


Always A Family, No Matter What

by Zelda_Legends



Category: Dimensional Links, The Legend of Zelda & Related Fandoms
Genre: All the Links just get into their backstories, Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Basically, Blood and Gore, Crying, Curses, DL sequel spoilers, Familial Abuse, Gen, Hugs, Hunters & Hunting, I'm probably missing stuff, I'm trying to get everything though, Implied/Referenced Character Death, Infection, Let me know if I did miss things in the comments and I will add here asap, Lynel AU, Magic, Major Character Injury, Mentions of parental abuse/neglect, Minor Character Death, Not everything follows DL, Parasites, Running Away, Some Humor, ThIS IS AU keep in mind, They're very sad mind you, This is some deep stuff, all the DL boys turn into Lynels, limited though
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-31
Updated: 2020-07-31
Packaged: 2021-03-06 06:21:12
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 24,453
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25628890
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Zelda_Legends/pseuds/Zelda_Legends
Summary: In a horrible twist where the Links enter the Breath of The Wild era and run into a dark sorcerer, the Links get transformed into Lynels. What happens when Gen makes a terrible mistake and must confront his past?
Kudos: 18





	Always A Family, No Matter What

**Author's Note:**

  * Inspired by [Dimensional Links](https://archiveofourown.org/works/15194783) by [ChangelingRin](https://archiveofourown.org/users/ChangelingRin/pseuds/ChangelingRin). 



> So, first of all, the warnings from the tags apply, you MUST read them. Secondly, there is no way I wrote this monster of a story by myself. Composer from the Discord collaborated with me on it and we have the final masterpiece. So tons of thanks and credit to her! We really do hope you enjoy. Basically, this started as, "What if all the Links turned into Lynels?", and then turned into so much more as we began to write it. This took forever to write so kudos and comments are always appreciated! I try my best to make my stories pleasing to all you lovely readers!
> 
> Now, you can't read this without having read Dimensional Links first so if you haven't, then that is a must-do. I do, however, want to apologize for the wacky format. When I pasted it, everything was off and not consistent, but there's just so much, that I really don't want to go through it all and add more lines in between the words. Therefore, there will be a few times where the first line will be indented and other times when it's not. Also, some of them will be double spaced and others won't. Then again, that isn't the worst thing a book can have so please ignore it and read on anyway. One more thing is, there are spoilers for ChangelingRin's planned sequel and that is Breath of the Wild Lik's nickname. Other than that, though, everything is going along with Dimenional Links. Also, keep in mind this is an AU so things like, their partners showing up physically, and Dusk using magic are all from our own ideas. If you're still interested, continue reading and enjoy!

Dusk had been gathering wood for a fire when he heard yells from near the campsite. The transformed Hylian stopped moving for a second, then dropped the gathered wood and ran as fast as he could back to the hill he and the others had made their resting place. He stopped near the edge of the forest and looked on in horror as he saw numerous people circling the others with drawn weapons and lit torches. 

A feeling of rage started to overtake him, a part of him was scared to let his other half fully take over, but then, for the first time, he simply let his mental walls fall.

The Lynel reached to his side and drew his bow and notched an arrow to the bowstring, roared, then charged from where he was standing towards the others. Then reared up as someone crossed his path.

  
  
A young boy was standing before him, he couldn't possibly be more than the age of twelve. Dusk felt the helpless rage fade instantly as he looked down the drawn bow and he slightly lowered it. "Leave", the transformed Hylian growled, the Lynel removing the arrow from the bowstring and waving said arrow away from him towards no certain direction. "Although if you try to fight me, I _will_ defend myself."

  
  
The boy muttered something like "thank you" and took off from where he had been standing. Dusk watched him leave, then turned and galloped back to the others, then stopped beside the fallen young Lynel and knelt down next to him. He reached out and gently shook the fallen Hero's shoulder. "I'm going to get you out of here, I promise." 

The younger Hero lifted his head slightly and looked up at Dusk, then down at their other shoulder, where a bloodied arrow shaft was visible. "I hope so..." The voice belonged to Speck.

Dusk had been shot with arrows before, thanks to Stalfos and Moblins, he wordlessly examined the wound without touching it. "I can heal you but we need to get out of here. Can you stand? Pretty sure you can still run, we've got four legs now, after all."  
  
Speck nodded but before he could attempt to stand, both Heroes heard a yell and they both looked up to see a man standing over them with a drawn bow.

Without even thinking, Dusk rose to his full height to lunge at the man and as the man was knocked to the ground, the Hero of Twilight felt as if something had punched him in the chest.

He didn't breathe for a moment, his eyes wide, then he lowered his gaze to his chest. An arrow shaft was sticking out of it, a trickle of blood dying his fur crimson. 

Once again, he felt a sudden surge of rage and he reached out towards the man at his...hooves, lifted him into the air, then shook him. "Why?" he roared "Why are your people hunting us?" 

The man glared at the Lynel who was holding him. "You and your kind hunt and kill us like prey. You slaughter our livestock and trample our crops. If we all die today, we'll take you Farers with us, I hope all of you go to Hel."

  
  
Dusk gazed at the man for a second before he threw him aside, not caring where the man landed. He then looked around to see where the others were, then felt off balance. His vision doubled for a moment, then he felt himself collapse as he heard someone call his name.

  
  
“Din...” Gen cursed, crumpling to his knees as best he could to analyze Dusk's arrow puncture. 

“Is he going to be okay?” Sketch fret, his expression and tone filled with worry. 

“I...” Gen narrowed his eyes. “can't say for sure. If I can get this arrow out and find something to bind the wound with, then yes, but... In our current forms that will prove to be quite a challenge. Just... go and scare the mob off while I'm at, would you? I can't have him getting injured worse than he already is.”

Sketch frowned and nodded, turning to face the angry throng with the others quickly following. Well, all except Speck who was wavering on his feet. Gen glanced back briefly to watch as his friends stampeded off into the mob before sighing heavily and returning to the task at hand. 

“Speck,” Gen addressed and said hero limped closer to him. “I'm going to need you to wait a minute so I can get this arrow out of Dusk first. Just lay down and take steady breaths, okay? Just focus on breathing.” 

Speck nodded meekly and dropped to the ground next to Gen, doing as told. 

His hooves would be of no use; they were too big and would probably just break the shaft so that just left...

  
  
Oh boy.

  
  
Gen frowned and took a bracing breath. He'd deal with it if he had to for Dusk. As soon as his tongue touched the wood, he stopped. It wasn't even the taste that made him pause. What if... the arrowhead got stuck? Gen pulled his mouth back, eyes widening as he realized his only option. Dang, he wasn't sure he could do that. He _really_ didn't want to have to push the arrow all... the way.... through?

  
Hylia dangit! He couldn't do that even if he did get the guts to. Dusk's Lynel form was much wider than the arrow could ever hope to be, and the projectile just _had_ to pierce him in the chest! Gen squinted at the Hero of Twilight's injury weighing his options. He could either pull the arrow out now and hope the head came out with it, or he could wait until Dusk got reverted back into a Hylian to push the arrow completely through and then pull it out. However, if he chose the first option and the head didn't come out, there was a possibility of needing to do surgery to get the arrowhead out. If he chose the second option and they had to wait too long before they could transform him back, he could become seriously infected.

  
  
Neither option was desirable.

  
  
Gen contorted his face in panic, and his breathing picked up its pace. Dangit, he didn't know what to do. What chance was he supposed to take? He wasn't sure if potions could cure infections or not. If he put his hopes on that and he was wrong, that would cause so many complications that would all result in a whole lot of pain for Dusk. He certainly didn't want that, but maybe it was better than the possibility of surgery. Gen cast his eyes downward as he thought. He then remembered all the blood. The wound was not going to wait for him to decide, and blood continued to pour from the puncture.

  
  
Second option it was.

  
  
Even if he did manage to pull out the arrow and the head came with it, that would increase the blood flow and Gen didn't have much to staunch it with except his own body. Gen quickly positioned himself with his shoulder right up against his fellow Link's chest, right next to the arrow shaft, and adding as much pressure as possible.

  
  
“Alright,” Gen sighed, and then turned his attention to Speck who was just barely hanging on at this point.

  
  
This was the same problem... wasn't it? 

_Perfect_. 

“Farore,” Gen breathed to himself. It would be a challenge to staunch both of the heroes' bleeding by himself. 

The Chosen Hero turned his head to look behind him at the ongoing battle. Was that Wind? It was quite hard to tell when Lynels looked practically the same. But, it looked like maybe it could be Wind. Not too tall, not too short.

“Wind!” 

The Lynel Gen was looking at him, turned his head, and galloped back to the Link who'd called for him. 

“Thank Hylia,” Gen muttered to himself as Wind came to a stop in front of him. 

“Yeah?” Wind panted, obviously exhausted from the fight.

“I need someone to staunch the bleeding in Speck's wound.” 

Wind frowned. “Don't you want to get the arrow out first?” 

Gen scowled. “Well, yes, I would, but there's no telling if the arrowhead will follow it out. If the head got stuck, we may need to do surgery to get it out.” 

“But, isn't there a kind of tool that can scoop it out?” Wind tilted his head. 

Gen stared at him. “Yes, I think so, but I don't happen to have one as convenient as that would be. Besides, I'm pretty sure those things hurt like _heck_.”

  
“Well, I guess.” Wind stated before dropping down next to Speck and pushing up against the wound, just under the shaft, with his shoulder as well. “It just bothers me to leave this thing in here.”

“Tell me about it,” Gen grumbled. “What's it look like out there?” 

Wind tilted his head for a moment before realizing what Gen was asking. 

“Not too great, honestly.” He admitted. “I mean, we're trying not to actually kill anyone, but it's hard when they keep trying to hurt us.”

Gen huffed. “Why bother? If I was out there, I'd give those _demons_ a piece of my mind.” 

Wind's eyes widened and he looked to his half/actually-third-but-we-don't-mention-it leader to find said leader glaring pointedly at Dusk's wound. 

Oh.

Well, yeah, but- 

“But, Gen, killing those people isn't going to solve anything. It'll just give them more reason to kill us.”

Wind, you just pressed a button. 

“Really?” Gen scoffed. “I think it would solve quite a few things, actually. Like all the injuries you guys have gotten and _will_ get if we don't show them not to mess with us. Honestly, you think blocking their attacks and threatening them is going to do anything if we don't act? Eventually, they'll hit once and then again, and then again, and it just adds up Wind! I am not going to let any of you guys die, and if that means I have to kill them myself, then...” He shrugged, letting the sentence hang. 

Wind opened his mouth, then thought better of it and closed it. 

An awkward silence drifted over the two as they continued to apply pressure to each of their respective patient's injuries.

* * *

  
  


“ _Red_!”

Green, Vio, and Blue's eyes widened simultaneously as their comrade's crimson life fluid splashed out of a fresh stab wound. Red stumbled on his feet, barely managing to stop himself from collapsing. The hunters were then upon him.

Blue gasped, growled, and took off faster than a bolt of lightning.

“Blue,” Green rasped but did nothing more to stop him. Instead, he darted in along next to him, followed closely by Vio.

Blue grabbed them left and right, chucking them off his brother, caring only to get him out of harm's way. Green, though more reserved, was then soon at his side, pushing the men away and stomping on their feet, intimidating them enough to make them back off. Vio pulled out his bow, firing his arrows inches away from the people and also forcing them to retreat backward.

“Red,” Green panted, sliding up next to him. “Are you okay?”

“...Not... really.” Red grimaced, trembling on his weak feet. “I need to go see Gen.”

“Yeah, you do tha- Ah!”

An exploding pain buried itself deep in Green's forearm in the form of a dagger before it withdrew quickly as Blue came up and knocked the man off his feet.

“Holy Din,” Green cursed as the wound began leaking ruby streaks. “C'mon, Red. We'll both go see Gen.”

Red nodded meekly before he limped off away from the crowd with Green; Vio and Blue kept the men off as they made their way slowly to where Gen, Speck, and Wind were.

“Gen...” Green panted, helping support Red with an arm while dealing with his own wound.

Gen squeezed his eyes shut in long-suffering. “Of course....”

Wind frowned as Gen sent him a pointed look, clearly indicating their earlier conversation. Green, meanwhile, set Red down next Gen and used his now-free arm to staunch the bleeding in his own wound. Gen sighed and brought one of his hands up to place it atop of Red's injury, followed by Red's own hand for added coverage.

“I'm telling you...” Gen muttered under his breath just loud enough for Wind to hear, and the latter sighed heavily, unsure of what to do.

* * *

Ocarina and Mask, however, were using their bow and arrows to perfect use, shooting just barely next to anyone who dared step close. This plan, while effective, was also quickly draining their arrow supply.

“Leave, all of you!” Sketch's voice called from over to the left. “We won't kill any of you if you just leave! But the more you harm us, the more aggressive we'll have to get.”

Steam growled in time with this, doing his best to grill the threat in.

“We're not leaving until every last one of you is lying in a pool of your own blood!” Someone hissed from within the crowd.

The Links were disheartened. They weren't going to kill any of them regardless, but their threats weren't doing the trick. How did any of their villains do this and make them work? Maybe, Ocarina decided, he should give a little more credit to Ganondorf next time they met. Then thought better of it as he was sure he never wanted to see that man again.

Lost in his own thoughts while Mask was occupied, he didn't notice the hunter creeping up behind him until after a spear buried itself deep into his back, almost going completely through his stomach, and he was sure it would've had he not kicked back with his legs and knocked the guy clear of his feet, forcing him to yank the spear out jaggedly. Not his best move now that he thought about it. He immediately collapsed.

“Ocarina!” Mask screeched, mind reeling as he watched his past self struggle to stay conscious.

If Ocarina died...

Oh, goddesses.

Fury erupted in the older Hero of Time as he rammed the hunter and threw him against a nearby tree. He pulled out his bow and turned to the others, pulling the string back and letting it fly directly into the hip of the closest target. The man cried out and fell to the ground in agony. Mask, in his rage, blindly shot arrows from the waist below at the crowd. By the time he'd stopped seething, there were at least five people with varying leg wounds and others with grazes as the projectiles had scraped against them, but not punctured.

“Leave!” Mask roared, stomping his feet in tandem with this.

“You will die tonight!” Someone yelled back.

Mask would've continued in his wrath, but he heard a loud exhale from his other self, and he cast the conversation aside for the much more pressing issue.

“Ocarina?” He whispered, dropping down next to the aforementioned Link. “Stay with me. Come on, breathe! We've done this before. Just breathe. Focus on it. That's all you need to do.”

“Hnnng, ack!” Ocarina fell into a hoarse coughing fit, and something felt wrong. Something felt horribly wrong. He brought his arms to his mouth, covering it as he felt like he was hacking up his insides. A thick glob of liquid forced itself up his esophagus and out his mouth where the red blood stained the callousness of his hands crimson.

“Din...” Mask breathed, eyes wide as he made a beeline for Gen.

* * *

“Be realistic, Gen!”

“I am being realistic!” Gen retorted, nostrils flaring as he continued his argument. “I swear, if one more of you comes back with an injury, I'm going to make an example out of-”

“Gen!” Mask called, sliding to a halt next to his leader. “Ocarina needs-”

With an angry bellow, Gen shot to his feet and made a mad dash towards the battle.

“Gen, NO!” Wind screamed after him but to no avail.

Time appeared to be in slow motion as Gen silently reached to his side and drew his sword, the blade singing as it was freed from its scabbard. If he heard some of the younger Heroes yelling at him, he paid no mind. He grabbed the closest victim, lifted him into the air for everyone to see, and then ran him through, the holy blade of the Master Sword dyed crimson as it tore through the man’s insides and exited through his spine. A deafening crack was heard, overpowering the loud screaming of the hunter in pain. Gen threw him to the ground before rearing up and stomping on the man's skull, crushing it instantly as blood ran down the Master Sword’s blade and fell to the grass. 

No one spoke, and no one moved.

After what seemed like an eternity, Gen roared as he pointed the blood-soaked blade at the mob. “If you fear for your lives, you would leave immediately. However, if you wish to throw your existence away, then I guarantee you will suffer this man's same fate.”

There was a moment as multiple hunters turned and fled, running into the night and back to their homes. However, there were many who remained. 

“We'll sacrifice our lives for our people. We will not let his death be in vain! All of you will burn in Hel tonight!”

And with that, the battle began once more. Most of the Links retreated back, more than a little scared at Gen's sudden outburst, but some stayed and pushed the men away. These being Sketch, Steam, and Blue. Gen charged in, taking a few sword strikes to his sides as he did so, but caring not. He picked the men up, throwing them to the ground and crushing their bones beneath his feet, clearly on a rampage. Sketch and Steam were fending them off, blocking their strikes and pushing them back from the fire. Blue was taking more of a Gen approach, still not as violent, but harming people nonetheless. It was his way of avenging Red and Green.

  
  


* * *

An odd traveler and skilled fighter happened to be walking through the woods, calmly minding his own business during this time. Currently garbed in all black, the infrared eyes of the suit glowing bright crimson, the boy was granted inhuman sight. But as he was traveling, he heard distant chaos from atop a nearby hill. His protect instincts kicking in, he dashed toward the noise, concerned that he was way too late. However, the sight made him stop dead in his tracks.

Amid the glowing of the campfire, the teen saw over a dozen Lynels, most staying dormant, seeming nervous as they watched the ongoing battle. Multiple were wounded, being nursed by others, and some were unharmed, standing behind the ones up front nervously. The boy's current outfit made it hard to see him in the dark, blending into the night perfectly if not for his glowing eyes. He advanced closer to the scene, seeing at last who was battling whom. He frowned. Stupid hunters! Didn't they know who they were messing with?

A loud whistle broke into the chaos, causing everyone, including Gen, to stop and address. The boy threw a cloak over his eyes, blocking the glow from view and stepped into the light, revealing himself as a traveler dressed in dark clothes. Nothing out of the ordinary.

The boy was confused, slightly, as to why the Lynels weren't attacking. Surely, he thought, the humans would be dead by now if the beasts were trying.

“Pardon me, gentlemen.” He broke in, addressing the hunters. “but it seems you've a small problem.”

“Problem?” One of the men spat. “What-”

He was cut off as Steam pushed his blade back, ending their deadlock and causing him to stumble on his feet.

“The only problem are these beasts.” Someone finished.

The teen raised a brow. “They're not attacking. What brings you to kill them if they have done nothing to you?”

“Done nothing!?” A man shouted. “They killed three of our people.”

“And injured countless more!” Someone bit, crushed arm dangling uselessly and painfully at his side.

The boy frowned. “That may be, but did they attack you first or were they only defending themselves?”

There was silence before a man spoke up. “Their kind plague us with terrors every day! They trample our crops, murder our villagers! We were only-”

“That did not answer my question.” The boy interrupted firmly.

“We have a right to attack them regardless of whether or not they-”

“Oh? And why is that? You end innocent lives for sport?”

“It's not for sport! They're evil beasts! Why do you defend them?”

The boy's shoulders sagged, had his eyes been visible, he would've been giving the man an incredibly flat stare. “Look at them! Right now! What are they doing?”

“What does that have to-”

“What are they doing!?”

The shout echoed throughout the forest and the men stopped talking, observing the Lynels in front of them.

“They're... sitting on the ground?”

“They're not attacking you.” The teen clarified. “Don't you see? They mean no harm. Leave them be.”

A man bristled. “Who are you to tell us what to do?”

The boy sighed and raised his cloak, allowing the men full view of his glowing red eyes. “I am Link.”

Most of the men gasped, cursing with what sounded like, “monster,” while the Lynels reeled back in shock – something clicking in their brain and evidently surprising most of them.

“Demon!” A man shouted.

They all fled in terror.

The boy quirked an eyebrow, muttered, “It's just an outfit,” under his breath before shrugging and turning to face the Lynels.

“Shadow?” One called.

He frowned. “No, I'm Link.”

“Well, we know you're a Link, Shadow, I just never thought you'd admit it out loud.”

He frowned even heavier. “I've never been called Shadow before, but if you want to, I guess that's fine.”

The Lynels blinked, clearly confused.

“You, uh, look like you could use some help.” Link nodded to the injured Lynels and went for his pouch. “I have some food. They have healing powers. Tell me, though, why do you not attack?”

Still confused, but going with it nonetheless, one of the Lynels stepped forward. “We're not actually Lynels. We used to be normal Hylians, but due to a complicated encounter with a dark sorcerer, we transformed into Lynels.”

Link put a hand to his chin. “I'm sorry. The people here hunt those beasts. While it's true that they're normally vicious monsters, I usually avoid combat unless they attack first.”

The Link cluster nodded in understanding, most having faced Lynels themselves.

“Well, there's not much I can do for your curse, but I can help your injuries.” Link said, walking towards them with his adventure pack in hand.

Curse, Mask thought, feeling like an utter idiot. “Curse! Gen, do you happen to have...” He trailed off as he then remembered the state his half/actually-third-but-we-still-don't-mention-it leader was in.

Most of the Lynels, with the exception of the wounded ones and their caretakers, shuffled awkwardly back as all eyes landed on Gen. The Link in question seemed utterly oblivious to his surroundings as he stared wide-eyed at the dead body beneath him. His stomach churned, and he felt sick. He killed him, and not just him but others as well. He must have killed at least two more and injured countless. Goddesses, he felt like he was about to throw up. He did not deserve to be alive after what he'd done. He was supposed to be a hero? He was supposed to save the people, not kill them. Oh goddess, he couldn't see. His vision blurred, and his head felt light. He could hear his heart pounding in his ears and his breathing hitched in his throat.

“Gen!”

Gen jerked his head at a large hand on his shoulder, turning to face Lore who was giving him a reserved look of concern.

“Do you have blue potion?” The normally loud Link spoke in a quieter voice.

“Blue potion...” Gen repeated, trying to focus on the question.

Did he have blue potion? Maybe. He should check. With a deep breath, Gen reached into his bag and sifted through the contents. Yes, he did, but why was that important. Potion didn't work on Lynels.

“Yes..” Gen breathed before locking eyes with Lore. “But why-”

“Mask says that blue potions cure curses. Something about 'he had to use it in Ikana Valley to cure himself when he got cursed'.”

Gen blinked. “Yeah, okay.”

He felt like he was in a trance as he passed out the blue potions to the rest of the Links. Most of them, as he handed the potions to them, would be a bit standoffish, but Gen didn't honestly notice. He was too wrapped up in his own thoughts to notice. Too busy thinking about what the Links thought of him now. But as soon as he noticed the more injured Links – Dusk, Speck, and Ocarina – he seemed to snap out of it a bit more, focused on having Link giving them the healing food.

It wasn't long before most of the Links were standing up on their own two feet unharmed. The only exceptions were Ocarina, who had passed out due to blood loss soon after he transformed back, – the food healed wounds, but it didn't replace blood – Dusk, who was still out from earlier, – Gen made sure he didn't get any food so that the wound didn't heal around the arrow, but miraculously got him to swallow enough potion even while he was out – and Speck, who was barely lucid and also didn't have any food for the same reasons that Dusk didn't. Gen, though last, drank blue potions as well, having just barely enough on himself to transform into a normal Hylian. Link was more than willing to oblige and pass around some of his own cooked food. Despite his firm stance during the scuffle, the Links soon found out just how shy and quiet this Link was. He didn't talk much and mostly drifted into the back as the Links did their thing.

Gen, through his own injuries, didn't even stop to accept any food, letting his open wounds seep crimson as he knelt next to Dusk and took hold of the arrow shaft that protruded from his chest. Taking a deep breath and telling himself that he could do this, he pushed down on the projectile. The surrounding Links winced as they watched the arrow dig deeper into their fellow Link's body. Gen sighed and asked for Wind to help him by turning and holding Dusk on his side as he finished the job, pushing it all the way through. Gen sighed in relief, seeing no important organ parts on the head, just flesh and blood as he then snapped the head off and slid the shaft out of his body, informing Link that he could try and get Dusk to swallow some softer food to close the wound and stop the profuse bleeding. Speck, who had watched the whole ordeal, lost color and bit his lip in fear as Gen told him he was going to have to do the same to his own arrow. Gen already had him laying on his side.

“Couldn't I just, you know, try to pull it out without doing that?” He asked timidly, trembling slightly.

Gen sighed. “Trust me, if I could, I would, but Speck, we really can't risk that.”

“I really don't want to do this.” Speck let out a little whimper as a few tears sprang into his eyes.

Gen squeezed his eyes shut. “I know. Neither do I, really Speck.”

Speck took a deep, bracing breath. “O- Okay, but please... make it quick.”

“Of course.” Gen opened his eyes and nodded. “Just close your eyes, turn your head away, and try to focus on something else.”

Speck bit his lip and did as told, feeling the tears slip down his cheeks. Gen braced himself, grabbed the arrow with two hands to steady it, and pushed through as fast and as straight as he could. It didn't quite go all the way through on the first push, and Gen winced, losing a bit of focus as Speck screamed in pain. Wind was soon down at his side, steadying Speck so he didn't thrash and make it harder. Gen was inwardly grateful for Wind's tolerance and calm demeanor as he then finished the job quickly, snapping off the arrowhead and then sliding the shaft out. He was slightly concerned though because as he was pushing it through, he felt Speck's shoulder blade get scraped. Speck was shaking and crying in agony as Wind tried to soothe him. Gen called Link over, and Speck forced himself to calm down and eat, telling himself that he would feel all better after.

Gen sighed and looked over to Dusk. Apparently, Link had been able to get him to swallow enough food to close the wounds. How he did it was beyond him.

“Hey, Sha- Link?” Gen called. “How'd you get Dusk to swallow?”

Link bit his lip and looked down and away slightly. “Well, he obviously can't swallow food that's not chewed so, um, I chewed it and then hit his back hard enough to get it down his throat.”

Gen blinked. “Oh. That's fine, really. As long as his wounds are sealed, I'm not going to complain.”

Link just nodded before standing up. “Listen, it wouldn't be good for you guys to reciprocate out here, so how about you come to my house-”

Just then, Shadow happened to pop his head out.

“Hey, are you idiots out of those hideous forms yet? I can't believe you guys were so stupid that you'd actually-”

He stopped as his eyes landed on Link.

There were approximately ten seconds of awkward silence before Shadow scrambled the rest of the way out and was in front of Link in a flash. Link, meanwhile, was confused and slightly on edge.

“Who are you?” Shadow seethed, clenching his fists at his sides.

“I, uh, I'm Link.”

Shadow squinted at him. “You,” he poked a finger in his face, causing Link to lean back slightly. “Why are you copying me?!”

“I, um, I get better eyesight in the dark with this outfit.” Link stuttered, unsure of where this hostility was coming from.

“Outfit?”

“Yeah, I mean, if I'm offending you, I can change.”

Shadow narrowed his eyes further at him.

Link got the message. “Just give me a minute.”

Link slipped into the dark of the woods and quickly slipped out of the dark costume before slipping into his green tunic and comfortable cream pants. He decided it would make him fit in a bit better with the others anyway. As soon as he stepped out, however, he got quite a few shocked looks.

“Somehow, I wasn't actually expecting him to be an actual Link.” Someone muttered.

Wind, meanwhile, was fascinated. “Cool, you have the exact same outfit as me. Like, more than the traditional green tunic and floppy hat.”

“Oh.” Link said, not quite understanding but noticing the similarities in their clothes just the same. “Um, maybe, on the way to my house, you could tell me a bit about yourselves, and how you all got here.”

The Links exchanged looks before Lore spoke up. “That's perfect.”

  
  


* * *

“That's quite the story.” Link commented, setting his adventure bag on the floor of his home.

“Yeah well, I can only imagine how many chapters of a book that took up.” Blue nodded.

He then got tackled.

“And, from what you've told me... that's normal?” Link clarified.

“Yes.” The group chorused.

“Huh. So, about this crisis, you think I'm recruited to help fix it?”

“No, not think, we know. If you're a Link, then you're needed for this.” Vio informed from atop the pile.

“Hmm...” Link thought, placing a hand on his chin. “But, what about Calamity Ganon?”

Lore sighed. “Well, yeah, but what threat is he compared to this one?”

“I guess.” Link grimaced.

“So, nickname?” Red asked, sitting next to Link.

“What?”

“Well, we told you that we nicknamed ourselves to differentiate, right?” Wind clarified.

“Yeah, I think so.”

“Red was always the one to do it.”

“Ah, I see.”

“So, what's your hero title?” Red questioned.

“My... hero title?” Link asked.

“Yeah, like, I'm the Hero of Winds.” Wind stated and then gestured to Lore. “And he's the Hero of Legend, but we all call him Lore. Legend sounded odd so we used a synonym.”

Link made an 'oh' face as he then turned to Red. “Well, I don't really know my hero title. In fact, I'm not sure I have one.”

Red seemed only slightly disheartened. “That's okay! Sketch over there isn't actually the Hero of Sketches, he's really the New Hero of Hyrule, but since Realm is already that without the 'New', we went by one of his abilities which is turning into a painting. So, Sketch fit him the best.”

“Huh.”

“So, do you have any special abilities?”

“Well,” Link mused, pulling out his Sheikah Slate. “I have this, which allows me to have an unlimited supply of bombs, summon my Master Cycle, make things stay in place and hold all its kinetic energy, manipulate metal objects, and quite a few other things. They're called runes, I think.”

Lore's eyes glistened as soon as he heard 'unlimited supply of bombs'. Steam's eyes, on the other hand, shone as soon as he heard 'Master Cycle'.

“Do you want to be called Rune then?” Red asked, giving the newest Link a surprisingly accurate representation of an adorable puppy.

Link silently cursed his weakness of adorable puppies. “I mean, it's not bad.”

“Great!” Red exclaimed, glomping the newly-dubbed Rune in a hug.

“So, about that unlimited supply of bombs?” Lore asked as soon as Red was off and sitting on the floor again.

“Hm?” Rune barked. “Oh, yeah, um, it's this rune here.” He lifted the slate up for Lore to see and pointed at the designated button. “I can also detonate them on command.”

Lore squinted at the rune and muttered something under his breath that sounded suspiciously like, “...gonna paint that on my hand and see if...”.

“What's the Master Cycle, out of curiosity?” Steam questioned, glancing at the Sheikah Slate with maximum interest.

“Um, you could come outside with me, and I'll show you.”

“Yes, please.” Steam then called. “Hey, Sketch! You want to see this?”

“What's 'this'?” Sketch asked from across the room.

“This Master Cycle thing of Rune's.”

“Rune's?” Sketch tilted his head.

“The newest Link's.” Steam clarified.

“Oh, neat!” Sketch commented, evidently liking the nickname. “Sure!”

  
  


* * *

“Gen....” Mask began, unsure of what to say as the Link in question sat next to the beds where Ocarina, Speck, and Dusk lay. Speck had passed out on the trip back.

“I know what you're going to say.” Gen sighed. “That I went overboard... And I'd agree with you. That wasn't my place.”

Mask awkwardly closed his mouth, feeling slightly uncomfortable around Gen as he shuffled over next to Ocarina. The silence that drifted over the two of them was completely unwanted so Gen decided to break back into conversation.

“What would happen?” Gen asked, causing Mask to look up at him. “If Ocarina.... you know, died? What would happen to you?”

There was silence and Gen felt the need to clarify. “I mean, I don't think he will, I was just curious.”

Mask nodded slowly. “I'm not entirely sure myself, but I assume that I'd just, well, stop existing. Just disappear, I guess?”

Gen hummed in thought, accepting the theory without too much hassle. Mask sat uncertainly for a moment before noticing the red stains on the sides of Gen's tunic.

“You should have a red potion or something.”

“Oh, yeah, I guess.” Gen shook himself back into reality as he then reached for his bag. “I wanted to make sure you guys would be okay first. I guess I didn't really notice.” He let out a weak, halfhearted laugh as he then downed the potion.

Another silence hung in the room, and Gen was sure he was about to go crazy.

“I'm sorry.”

Mask glanced up.

“For losing it like that. I...” Gen stopped, feeling incredibly uncomfortable and self-conscious. “I should have better control of myself. I guess just... seeing you guys getting hurt... It triggered something, and... I'm sorry.”

Mask bit his lip and nodded his acceptance to his leader.

Gen winced inwardly at the display, and he excused himself.

As Gen stepped out, he saw Steam and Sketch conversing with the new Link about some sort of machine, but he paid them no mind. He simply slipped out and back behind the cozy home. Sitting in a patch of grass, Gen placed a hand to his head as he thought.

He still felt sick. He couldn't believe what he'd done. He usually had better control of himself. He didn't know what happened to make him snap, but it didn't matter now, Gen mused despairingly. They were dead and that was that. There was no changing it. He couldn't heal them even if he wanted to.

As he continued his train of thought, dizziness soon swept over him, and he was sure it wasn't from thinking. A sharp stabbing pain exploded in his sides where his wounds were, and he grabbed at them. The pain only intensified, and Gen gasped as he undid his belt and swiftly lifted his tunic to look at the injuries. The moon was a limited source of light, but Gen could see the wounds were a brighter shade of red than what was normal. Placing a hand on top, he felt a strange, clear liquid expelling itself from the opening, and he grimaced in pain. He tried to steady his breaths, but when the next flash of pain erupted, he couldn't focus on anything. Why didn't the potion work? It should have closed the wound, not prevented the closure. In his foggy state of mind, Gen couldn't even think about the cause. He only knew blinding pain.

His wound had been severely infected by parasites on the trip back as he had refused to stop and eat until they made sure everyone else would be okay. His wounds, without infection, weren't anything severe. He wasn't losing much blood and they could wait to be treated in his mind, but he'd failed to realize infection was an option and now he was dealing with the consequences.

He swore he could feel something wiggling around inside his abdomen, but honestly, that was nothing compared to the aching pain that was spreading fast across his torso.

“Guys...” He whispered, trying desperately to be loud enough. “Guys...”

In a panic, he tried to shout, but it seemed he only had the strength to whisper. Come on, he had to do this! He could do this, he just had to take a deep breath, flex his vocal cords and then-

“Guys!”

His vision went black.

  
  


* * *

Two days.

Two stinking days and the only person who'd woken up was Speck.

The rest of the Links were worried, especially Mask, but all of them really. They didn't even have Gen to help reassure them that they would be okay. For he too was out. Soon after his shout, Steam, Sketch, and Rune had run to the back to find Gen passed out on the ground, both hands gripping one of his wounds. Rune had dropped next to him, placing his torch near the sight and gasping as he saw just how pale Gen had become. Steam and Sketch were soon there as well, viewing his wound and becoming worried as to how red and agitated it was. Rune had gotten him to swallow food, but nothing seemed to happen, and that was concerning. Because if the healing powers weren't taking effect, something must be preventing it, so Rune had assumed it was an infection. Nothing too hard to cure; He just needed the right leaves and herbs to draw it out, but now, after two days and he still showed no signs of waking, the Links were becoming worried that something else might be at work.

Dusk and Ocarina were a whole other issue. They had lost an abundant amount of blood, and their bodies were struggling to produce enough to replace it. Eventually, if their bodies pushed themselves too hard, they would break down and death would welcome them into their arms, and that naturally caused panic.

  
Rune was at his wit’s end, with having to care for the wounded, along with making sure the younger ones were alright, as a Healer, even _he_ had his limits. 

He had specifically ordered the others to not enter the back room, in the case that any of the three wounded were to wake up, they didn’t panic. Thankfully they had heeded his words. 

The Champion was currently standing near a wooden table, absentmindedly looking down at a blood-stained sword. He hadn’t cleaned it, out of respect for its owner, in case he wanted to clean the blade himself when he woke up. Rune supposed he would have to talk to Gen about what he had done, in all honesty, he found he was somewhat fearing the conversation. 

“Rune?” 

A weak voice interrupted his thoughts and he lifted his head and looked over his left shoulder to find Speck leaning against the door frame. 

“What are you doing? You’re supposed to be resting, not walking around.” 

Speck sighed and hung his head before muttering. “I couldn't sleep, and I noticed you seemed a bit lonely.”

“Oh.” Rune smiled meekly at the smaller Link and gestured for him to come closer. “I'm sorry. Something specific bothering you?”

Speck walked lightly over and sat down on the edge of the table, letting his fingers whisper over the steel blade that lay on the table. He frowned as he watched the red droplet trickle down his hands and onto the wooden surface. “This.”

Rune hummed in understanding. “I see. I admit, it's bothering me too. I don't really know this Gen very well, but I can tell by your reactions that he normally wouldn't do such things?” his voice tilted up, turning his statement into a question.

“Yeah, I mean, normally, he's pretty docile. One of the more gentler Links, and now this... It just shakes me up a little.”

“Understandable.” Rune nodded. “But, maybe, you should... I don't know, put yourself in his boots for a minute.”

“What do you mean?” Speck asked head cocked to the side.

“Well,” Rune began. “Think. What would you have done, had you been Gen in that situation?”

Speck contemplated that for a moment. “So, you justify what he’s done based on the circumstances?”

Rune paused. “Yes. I mean, you have to consider the whole situation, not just your point of view. Gen did what he did to save you all, to keep you out of harm’s way.”

Speck nodded slowly.

Rune went silent for a second, then picked up Gen’s sword and eyed his reflection in the blood-stained blade before he held it out in front of him.

  
  
“Shouldn’t you clean that?” Speck questioned.

  
  
Rune shook his head as he lowered the sword and placed it back on the wooden table. “No. I won’t, out of respect for him.”

Speck frowned but nodded anyway. “I mean, I totally understand _why_ Gen did that, I just…” He shook his head as words failed him.

“I know, trust me. It rubs me the wrong way too, but you have to take things in perspective as well.” He looked off into the middle-distance. “That’s one of the many things I’ve learned on my adventure in the wild. Everything has to be viewed in perspective, or else no one will ever understand each other.”

Speck took a deep breath as he absorbed that. There was silence for a moment until Speck quietly said. “Thank you.”

Rune blinked. “Oh, uh, you’re welcome.”

The Hylian Champion watched absently as Speck dropped from the table and walked back to the cots in the sleeping quarters. His eyes drifted back towards the red blade on the table and he sighed. He _really_ wasn’t looking forward to this conversation.   
  


* * *

The next day was entirely too cheerful in the Links’ opinion for their situation. The birds sang happily outside and the wind blew a gentle breeze, rustling the grass and flowers. Most of the group sat glumly around the cabin, worry gripping every corner of their mind as they stared out the window idly. It must have been around midday by the time Rune stepped out of the backroom, a small smile gracing his lips as he announced.

“Dusk’s awake!”

Several of the Links stood up at once, and there was an awkward moment of silence as they realized that not everybody should go in at once. In the end, Mask, Lore, and Realm stepped in to see their leader.

“Dusk?” Realm quietly whispered, standing by his bed with narrowed eyes at Dusk’s closed ones.

He thought Rune said he was-

“Realm?” Dusk breathed, gently fluttering his eyes open and heavy breaths echoing throughout the small room.

“Hey,” He said softly, a smile forming on his expression.

“Where…. Where am I?”

“Well,” Lore began, breaking into the conversation. “That’s a bit of a story. See, while you were out after being all heroic-like,” He paused as Dusk let out a weak laugh. “The native Link dropped by and brought us to his house. Name’s Rune by the way.” He winked.

Dusk mustered a small chuckle before he dropped back to being serious. “So, our Lynel forms?”

“Heh.” Mask laughed dryly. “Turns out, I’m a real idiot. I forgot that blue potions cured curses. I guess it never really occurred to me that we were cursed. I just thought of it as a dark spell, but then I realized, ‘They’re the same thing!’”

Dusk hummed in understanding, and a look of worry crossed his face. “And Speck?”

“The one you passed out on, trying so desperately to save?” Lore asked with amusement. “Yeah, he’s fine. Gen patched him up.”

A smile slid onto Dusk’s features. Gen would always take care of them, it seemed. “No one else got hurt, right?”

Lore’s smile faded as well as Mask’s and Realm’s. “Yes, well, that’s not actually the case.”

  
  
Rune sat down on the edge of the bed and eyed Dusk. “I’m afraid several of the younger ones were injured, thankfully, potions and healing food helped.” His voice was low and quiet as if to not alarm the Hylian before him. “You’ve been asleep for the past three days, I’ve been tending to you.”

Dusk’s smile also faded. “What about Gen?”

Lore’s frown deepened. “Look to your left, Dusk.”

Dusk hesitantly looked over to his side to find two more occupied beds. 

Gen and Ocarina.

“What happened?” He breathed.

“Ocarina was,” Mask cleared his throat as his breath hitched in his throat. “He was brutally stabbed through with one of the men’s spears. He’s been out for about as long as you have.”

Dusk’s concern skyrocketed. “And Gen?”

“We’re not sure.”

Rune then spoke up. “I thought that maybe it was an infection, due to the color and agitation in one of his smaller wounds, but the herbs and spices meant to treat such things did nothing. I’m… at a loss.”

Dusk took a deep breath, absorbing the situation, and trying to think past his tired mind.

It wasn’t working the way he wanted it to.

His eyes drifted shut as his head lolled to the side. “I’m sorry. I’m really tired. I wish I could help more.”

Rune shook his head. “No, no. You need to rest. After you feel better, we can decide. Who knows? Maybe, by then, Gen will have recovered, too.”

“Maybe…” Dusk mused wearily as he slowly drifted off.

However, a certain Twili imp thought otherwise.

“ _You’re not going back to sleep again, are you little wolf? You were just out for three days!_ ”

Dusk inwardly groaned as he futilely attempted to ignore the voice in his head.

“ _Come on! You know I have magic! I used it all the time on our adventure together!_ ”

Dusk blinked, waited for the others to file back out, before answering quietly. “What does that have to do with anything?”

Midna giggled. “ _Well, it sounds like all of you Links are as reckless as you and went and got themselves hurt. I do happen to have some knowledge in healing magic._ ”

Dusk frowned and tilted his head. “Yeah, but… you’re in my shadow. How is that going to work?”

Midna chuckled slyly as she responded. “ _I just have to channel it through you._ ”

Dusk gave the air in front of him an incredibly flat stare. “And you’d do that….how?”

“ _Simple, really. I just have to store up enough magic power in your soul, have you do a thing, and then poof! All better._ ”

“That was incredibly unspecific.” Dusk stated dryly.

Midna cackled. “ _I know._ ”

The Hero of Twilight let out a resigned sigh. “Listen, I can’t even stand up right now. As much as I’d love to help heal these guys, I don’t think I could survive Twilight magic in me right now.”

Midna rolled her eyes. “ _Fine, but as soon as you wake up the next time, we’re doing this._ ”

Dusk took a bracing breath. “We’ll see. I’m not committing to anything.”

Midna laughed. “ _We’ll see about that!_ ”

Dusk sighed again and closed his eyes, falling asleep peacefully once again.

* * *

The next time Dusk woke up, he still felt exhausted, but Midna wasn’t hearing any of it.

“ _Come on, Little Wolf, you’ve had plenty of time to recover._ ”

“Midna…” Dusk groaned. “I’m _exhausted_. More than exhausted.”

“ _Oh, suck it up! You’ve dealt with worse than this before! Come on! Or I’m going to have to start calling you Lazy Wolf!_ ”

Dusk wasn’t entirely sure if that was a threat or not, but considering this was Midna, it probably was. With a sigh and a heave, Dusk pushed himself up into a sitting position and swung his legs easily over the side of the bed. He paused for a moment, getting used to the shift in gravity before tentatively placing his feet on the ground and standing up.

“ _See? You can do it, little wolf, you just needed some encouragement!_ ”

Dusk could _hear_ the mocking tone in her voice but accepted it as just another one of Midna’s horrible-but-we-love-it-anyway attempts at affection. Either way, he stumbled his way over to Ocarina and waited for Midna to start instructions.

  
  
“ _Hmm...Maybe...I was somewhat harsh. You can sit down for this if you like. I am curious though, you Hylians also have magic in your blood. I assume you can channel this magic, seeing you lot can use those weapons. My magic shouldn't be_ that _different...I think.”_

_  
_ _  
_ Dusk found that he didn’t necessarily want to sit back down, having just stood for the first time in three days, but he heeded Midna’s words and found a wooded backed chair near Ocarina. “Right. Now what?”

  
  
_“Just hold out your hand towards him. I’ll channel my magic.”_

  
  
The Hero of Twilight hesitated, then did as Midna asked, only to notice his Triforce piece slightly glowing. “What…”

  
  
_“...That’s weird. I don’t remember that ever happening…”_ Midna sounded slightly concerned if that was possible. _“I’m sure that’s fine…”_

  
“You don’t sound too convinced.”

  
  
Dusk didn’t receive an answer, then got the shock of his life when his Triforce piece seemed to be set aflame and a golden tendril of unaltered magic appeared above his hand and flew towards Ocarina. He watched in mute awe as the light surrounded the wounded Hylian, then faded.

  
  
Dusk felt fine, as if he had never been injured in the first place. He found that he felt like he could run around Hyrule Castle twice and not grow tired.

  
  
“I…” Dusk was at a complete loss for words.

“Wow!”

Dusk was startled out of his skin as he heard Midna’s voice physically next to him.

“I never thought I’d say this, but… that was impressive. I never knew you had it in you.”

“Wait, but… how-”

“Am I here?” Midna finished, flashing her trademark smirk at him. “I’ve been able to, but it costs me a bit of magic, hence why I waited until you were fully healed to come out.”

Dusk snapped his mouth shut and raised an eyebrow at her.

“I felt that I needed to make this memorable for you. It was worth the energy cost.” Midna clarified.

“Ah.” Was all Dusk could say as he then examined his hand once more.

It was still glowing slightly.

“I have no idea what happened.”

“Honestly?” Midna shrugged. “Neither do I, but it was impressive nonetheless.”

Dusk turned back to his partner in mild surprise.

“What?” Midna asked innocently. “I can’t compliment you once in a while?”

Dusk just blinked and visibly decided not to question it.

Besides, the fact that Ocarina’s eyes were fluttering open was a great distraction.

As soon as the Hero of Time’s vision focused, he mumbled. “Dusk?”

A warm smile spread across his fellow Link’s face. “Yeah, it’s me.”

“Where?”

Dusk interpreted the vague question with ease. “In the native Link’s house. Have you met him yet?”

“Mmm…” Ocarina hummed as he tried to remember. “I think so… briefly… maybe.”

Dusk let out a small laugh. “That’s okay if you don’t remember.”

“Yeah….” Ocarina muttered, lazily yawning immediately after.

  
  
The three heard rhythmic footfalls and they all glanced towards the open doorway nearby, Midna vanishing into Dusk’s shadow soon after. Rune was standing there, looking concerned. “I heard voices.” He then noticed that both Dusk and Ocarina were awake and he silently walked over to them.

“I was just about to get you.” Dusk nodded absently in Rune’s direction as he got up from the chair he was currently sitting in. 

Rune nodded in return and tilted his head at the two of them. “Dusk… shouldn’t you be resting? I’m honestly surprised you’re standing at all.”

Dusk sighed. “Me too, really, but I woke up, and…” He stopped before continuing. “Well, it’s a complicated story, but I have a companion who lives in my shadow… she had an idea to heal these two.” He gestured to Ocarina and Gen. “And, it turns out, I inadvertently ended up healing myself as well. I… haven’t gotten to try it on Gen yet… Did that make sense?”

Rune tilted his head. “Sort of? I’m a bit confused, though. You have a… companion that lives in your shadow?”

Dusk sighed again. “It’s a long story.”

“I see.” Rune frowned. “Well, I won’t pry. I mean, I’m the new guy, but-”

“No, it’s fine.” Dusk dismissed. “We’ll eventually get around to telling you our backstories, it’s just that, well, everything’s been pretty hectic lately.”

Rune gave a dry chuckle. “You can say that again.”

“Everything’s been pretty hectic lately,” Dusk repeated, nodding sagely.

Rune laughed. “You guys… I can never get over how much like a family you all are.”

Dusk smiled warmly. “We’ve been through a lot together.”

“I can see that.”

There were a few seconds of peaceful silence before Ocarina broke back in. “I don’t mean to interrupt or anything, but how long was I out?”

“Oh!” Rune shook his head and turned back to Ocarina. “I’m sorry. Umm… you’ve been out for about three days.”

Ocarina blinked in surprise. “Three days?”

Dusk nodded. “I was surprised too. It sure doesn’t feel that long when you’re asleep.”

“You’re telling me.”

Rune facepalmed. “I have to tell Mask. The poor kid’s been up the whole time. Hasn’t gotten a minute of sleep!”

Dusk nodded in agreement as Rune took his leave to get the other Hero of Time.

“I might as well try to heal Gen while he’s at that,” Dusk muttered to himself before scooting over to the next bed as Midna floated back out.

“I wonder what’s wrong though…” Midna mused, sitting herself down on the edge of the bed.

“Not sure…” Dusk shrugged. “But the magic should cure whatever it is, right?”

Midna narrowed her eyes. “That depends.”

Dusk paused, concerned. “What do you mean, ‘That depends’? Depends on what?”

“Depends on the cause.”

Dusk stared at her for a moment before blinking. “Elaborate?”

“Well, as far as I know, my healing magic only cures open wounds, infection, and minor fractures in the bone.”

“Your point?”

“I’m not sure what your magic can heal, you only just activated it a few minutes ago.”

Dusk frowned. “I’m still not sure what you’re trying to get at.”

“This may or may not work.” Midna clarified. “I mean, they tried curing the infection, and it’s not like the wound is _that_ open. We already know he doesn’t have any bones in his stomach… or at least… he shouldn’t.”

“Well, I know that Midna, but this isn’t your magic. Mine may work differently.”

“I know that.” Midna shrugged. “I’m only stating that there’s a possibility that this won’t work.”

“And?”

Midna sighed. “Don’t get your hopes up.”

“You always were such a pessimist,” Dusk grumbled before lifting his left hand and holding it out above Gen’s wound.

With a fierce look of concentration, Dusk tried hard to reproduce the same golden tendril that had appeared earlier. After a few moments of failed efforts, Dusk was about to stop trying until his triforce piece lit up like a firework and shot healing magic out through his hand, where it swirled around Gen, then disappeared.

There were a few moments of silence as Dusk and Midna surveyed the results.

“Do you think it did anything?” Midna questioned, bringing a hand to Gen’s side as she did so.

She gasped slightly and recoiled as the skin stitched back together on its own.

“Yeah, I _think_ it did,” Dusk smirked, watching Midna’s reaction with amusement.

“Oh, you.” she berated. “That was a bit disturbing to watch, okay?”

Dusk just chuckled.

Midna rolled her eyes before they widened and she retreated back into Dusk’s shadow. Mask stepped in right after, followed by Rune.

“Ocarina?” Mask practically ran over to his other self’s side and grabbed his hand as if checking to see if he was still awake.

“Mask?” Ocarina asked, squinting at his side and seeing the face of his younger-but-older self.

“Thank Nayru…” Mask breathed, and it seemed as though the weight of the world sagged off his shoulders. “I was so worried.”

Ocarina frowned and then his eyes widened. “Oh, Din… I almost killed the both of us.”

Mask sighed in exponential relief as he dropped into the chair Dusk had previously been occupying. “That doesn’t matter now. You’re alive and that’s all I could ask for.”

Ocarina smiled and closed his eyes for a moment. “Me too.”

There were a few moments of silence and Dusk looked over to Gen expectantly. He frowned in disappointment as Gen refused to awaken.

“Did you heal him too?” Rune asked after a moment.

“I… think so, at least… I tried. His wounds sealed, that’s good, but…” he stopped as a wave of lightheadedness crashed over him.

“Are you okay?” Rune questioned hurriedly steadying Dusk on his feet.

“Yeah, I just feel a little spent.”

“Too much magic?”

“Maybe.” Dusk mused, bringing a hand to his head.

“Hmmm…” Mask hummed, examining Gen from where he sat. “I don’t know, I mean, he still looks pretty pale to me.”

“Yeah, but Gen was always on the paler side.”

“I know, but he was never _that_ pale.”

“I guess…” Dusk frowned, seeing black spots in his vision.

“Woah, Dusk.” Rune eased, bringing his arm around the taller hero and setting him on his empty bed. “Careful.”

“I think I need to rest,” Dusk whispered just before he passed out.

“Magic overuse?” Rune asked Mask.

“Magic overuse,” He confirmed, nodding ruefully. “I can understand that. I mean, really, he just figured out he could use magic, and then he went and tried to heal two people. I mean, healing Ocarina alone was probably going to take it out of him.”

Rune hummed thoughtfully, thinking back to when he first got Mipha’s Champion ability. He’d overused that a couple of times and felt the same effects.

“So, how long do you think he'll be out?” Mask thought aloud, hoping maybe Rune had the answer.

“Mmm...” Rune mulled over it. “Probably at least a few hours. It depends how much magic he used.

Mask nodded and all was silent until Ocarina sat up.

“Ocarina, you really shouldn't be trying to stand.” Mask warned, trying to push his younger self back down.

“I'm fine, Mask,” Ocarina assured. “Whatever Dusk did really helped me heal. I mean, I practically feel brand new!”

Mask frowned doubtfully, but let him up regardless. “I'll be right here to support you if you feel tired though, okay? And for Farore's sake, please let me know if you start feeling dizzy.”

Ocarina chuckled at his other self's antics. “I will, I will. I'm not that irresponsible.”

Mask hmphed and mumbled something under his breath that sounded vaguely like, “I'm not very sure about that.”, and Ocarina snickered inwardly.

“I'm sure whatever Dusk did to Gen, will help him as well. He'll probably be up and awake within the evening.” Rune said optimistically as the three made their way out the door and into the main living area.

But fate was never kind to the Links, it seemed.

* * *

The evening passed and Dusk had awakened, reporting a negative when asked about Gen. The entire next day and night passed, and Gen was still out and unresponsive.

Rune decided action was needed.

“Guys, I know a Sheikan woman who lives up in Kakariko. It's... a bit of a way, but I know she'll be able to help. Her name is Impa and while she may not look like it, she's very advanced in the ancient Sheikan magic. I'm sure that includes healing magic.”

The Links, at this point, were devastated, overcome with worry, and certainly willing to do anything to help their sick hero.

“Point the way.”

“Be prepared though... It's quite a ways. I would normally teleport there, but... I don't know how many people I can take with this.” He lifted up his Sheikah Slate as he spoke.

“You don't know until you try...” Speck muttered quietly from over in the corner.

Rune swallowed. Surely nothing could go wrong from trying, right?

“Hold onto me then.” He said as he held Gen's shoulder, prepared to support him, and soon Dusk was there supporting his lower half.

“Ready?” Rune called as the last person grabbed Rune's forearm.

The Links verbalized varying affirmatives.

* * *

Rune took a deep breath and then activated the teleporting mechanism on the Sheikah Slate, selecting the eastern village of Kakariko, north of Heteno. The windy swirls of blue light circled around Rune before spreading around the rest of the group, surrounding the Links in the ancient Sheikan technology.

In a flash, the group was teleported to the entrance of Kakariko Village.

Rune blinked. “That works.”

“Where's Impa?” Wind asked hurriedly, trying valiantly to move as quick as possible.

“This way.”

* * *

“Link, my child, what brings you here?” Impa asked, a welcoming smile on her face.

Rune smiled back thinly before answering. “It's good to see you, Lady Impa, but I come to you on... urgent terms.”

“Oh?” Impa inquired, beckoning him to continue.

“I need to ask you a favor.” Rune began. “I recently met... different versions of me, and one of them is gravely injured.”

“Different versions of you?” Impa brought a hand to her chin and quirked an eyebrow. “Quite the interesting tale, but I will not pry. Where is this boy?”

Rune stepped out of the way and gestured for Dusk and Lore to carry Gen in. “This is Dusk, that's Lore and Gen's right here.”

“Hmm.” Impa hummed, examining the Chosen Hero's features. “And how long has he been out?”

“At least three days...” Rune said thoughtfully.

“About four.” Dusk clarified.

“I see,” Impa whispered, pondering the situation. “And, may I ask, what happened?”

The three exchanged looks.

“We're not quite sure, to be honest. He stepped outside, walked around for a bit, and then cried out. We... don't know what happened.”

“Oh...” Impa nodded. “Well, I suppose I'll have to take a look around, but please. Do you know if he was injured when he left?”

“He did have a few minor cuts on his sides that wouldn't close no matter what we tried, until finally, Dusk used his triforce magic to seal it.” Lore responded with a hand.

Impa's eyebrows went up. “And did you check for infection, perhaps?”

“First thing we did, actually,” Rune informed matter of factly. “But none of the herbs I used drew it out.”

“And you thought it was infected because of the coloration and agitation?”

“Yes.”

“Hmm.” Impa thought. “Well, I can use exploratory magic for mystery symptoms like this. Please, be quiet as I concentrate.”

“Of course.” Dusk nodded.

Impa smiled lightly before placing her hands above Gen's sides and closing her eyes. The Links waited somewhat impatiently, but respectfully nonetheless as they heard her chanting an old language under her breath. They watched as her hands lit up orange and created a thin beam of light that connected her hands to where Gen's injuries had been. After a few moments, the light died down and Impa slowly opened her eyes, her smile gone.

Dusk waited a moment before asking. “What's wrong?”

“How long did you say he's been out?” Impa asked gravely.

“Um, about four days.” Dusk frowned.

“I see...” Impa breathed, a look of worry plastered onto her face.

“Did you find what's wrong?” Lore repeated, not liking the atmosphere that presented itself.

“...” Impa looked down and thought for a minute. “Yes, thankfully, I can cure it, I just... don't know how severe this is.”

“How can you cure it and not know how severe it is?” Lore questioned impatiently.

“Lore.” Dusk whispered, getting his attention and giving him a stern look.

Lore just huffed as Impa answered. “Because. This happens to be something that, with time, gets worse. I don't know how deep this went.”

“How deep?” Rune tilted his head, confused.

Impa sighed heavily. “He has a parasite, children. A certain kind of parasite that eats away at the inner organs. If it entered through his abdomen then...” She paused then continued. “It could very well have chewed away at his stomach, and perhaps even his intestines.”

The Links winced.

“You can heal that, right?” Dusk clarified.

“I can seal the organs back up, extract the parasite, and get rid of any bacteria that it left behind. All of which will help him survive, but,” Her tone held warning as she continued. “I can't replace the tissue that the parasite has consumed, only use what's left. I suggest you pray to your goddesses that there's enough there for me to work with. I'm going to need space, but perhaps, the person he's closest to should stay by him. It may help coax him out of this and help him awaken sooner.”

The three were silent for a moment before Lore spoke up. “He treated us all the same to my knowledge. I'm not sure if there was anyone he was particularly close to.”

Dusk frowned and then spoke up. “He did, on occasion, pull me aside to speak to me alone. Did he do that with everyone?”

Lore reciprocated. “No, I don't think so. Maybe you should stay.”

Dusk nodded agreeably and the two left the room.

“I am, however, going to need to make an incision for the ejection. You don't have to watch if that bothers you.”

Dusk shook his head. “I've gotten my fair share of open wounds, I'll be fine.”

“Well,” Impa continued as she walked to the back of the room for a scalpel. “You do what makes you feel comfortable.”

Dusk nodded.

Impa sat back down and raised an eyebrow at the hero across from her. “Would you mind helping me raise his tunic and remove this... chainmail nonsense.”

Dusk cracked a small smile at her comment before nodding and it wasn't long before Impa had access to Gen's exposed torso.

“Thank you, deary.” She thanked absently as she placed her hand on his skin and added pressure before frowning and moving further to the side.

Dusk sat patiently and watched. “What are you doing?”

“I'm trying to locate the position of the parasite.”

Dusk tilted his head and continued to silently watch, noticing that every time she moved, her scowl deepened. Eventually, her hand began to move lower, and lower. Stopping just at his navel with widened eyes.

“That's low.” She muttered under her breath, but Dusk caught it, and he worried at his lower lip.

Grabbing the scalpel with her free hand she positioned it just above her stationed one. She glanced up at Dusk. “You may hold his hand if it makes you feel any better.”

Dusk nodded and reached for Gen's hand, holding it in one hand and squeezing slightly as he watched the end of the knife puncture his skin. She soon closed her eyes again, dropping the utensil off to the side and bringing both hands up over the new wound. With a fierce scowl of concentration, Impa began chanting the same language as before under her breath, but this time, her hands lit up blue. A thin, curvy string of light seeped from her hand and entered the injury, presumably doing its work. After a few more moments, Dusk was able to see a tiny worm-like creature hanging limp in the wave of light before vaporizing away as it reached her palm. Soon, after a few more lines, Impa retracted her hands and the light faded away, sealing the puncture behind it.

“You got it?” Dusk furrowed his brow as he asked.

“I got it alright.” Impa frowned contemplatively then looked up at Dusk. “I'm... amazed. The parasite traveled so low yet, the damage done was minimal. Enough to cause alarm for sure, but not nearly as much as I thought it'd be. His stomach was slightly affected, but the worst part was the intestines. Which surprises me in a way, because its first target would've been the stomach. I had assumed, since it made its way so low, that his stomach would've been almost completely mutilated, but that's not the case. His intestines definitely got the worst of it. I was able to patch up his stomach with no issue.” 

Dusk nodded, and creased his eyebrows. It sounded like Gen would be alright.

But Impa wasn't done.

“His intestines, though, are also just as important. They got rather destroyed, at least this middle section here. I closed up any openings, but as stated, I couldn't replace anything causing them to shrink slightly. Now, it's up to him to fight this and produce the energy needed to finish the job. However, I do think that with time, some prayers, and your company, he'll pull through just fine.” Impa smiled. “I think that maybe your magic might have been able to heal most of his stomach, meaning that the parasite was already in his intestines by that point. I also believe that you were able to partially heal some of those as well, hence why this isn't as serious as I had first assumed. You weren't a moment too soon with that magic, boy.”

_“See? Aren't you glad you used your magic as soon as you woke up_?” Midna's voice sing-songed in the back of his head.

“I... had some encouragement.” Dusk smiled fondly as Midna smirked from within his shadow.

Impa tilted her head, slightly confused at the statement but shrugged it off. “Well, I'm sure that this encouragement came from someone who cares a lot about you boys.”

Dusk smirked as he felt Midna become flustered within his shadow. “I'm sure she does.”

“Well, I'll leave you together.” She began to walk out only to stop at the doorway and say, “Talking to him might not be such a bad option either.”

And with that, she walked out.

Dusk blinked at the advice and turned back towards his co-leader.

Not that Dusk would ever admit to being a co-leader, but still.

* * *

Rune stood up as soon as he saw Impa walking out. “Is he okay?”

Impa smiled fondly. “My child, I believe that with time and some prayer, he will surely awaken by tomorrow.”

The Links collectively sighed in relief. There was no way of knowing, but hearing it from another person who was skilled in such things as medicine, put a whole lot of assurance in their mind.

“Can we see him?” Sketch asked from across the room.

“I would advise only two people in the room at once, but let's give Dusk a few moments in there by himself why don't we, hm?”

A few of the Links exchanged glances, but nodded nonetheless.

* * *

“Gen,” Dusk began, shaking his head. “Why? Why did you get this and not me? I don't... I don't understand. My wound was open far longer than yours was, and yet, mine remained perfectly clean.”

Dusk sighed. “I suppose you wouldn't have it any other way though. Always putting our well-being above yours.”

“Still, you should've healed your own wounds at least.” Dusk frowned. “I mean, you can't help keep us healthy if you're out, you should know that. It was kind of stupid, don't you think?”

Dusk shook his head. “I don't even know if you can hear me or not, but we all care about you, Gen. You can't give up on this, okay? You never were one to give up. I know you can do this.”

Dusk smiled and he swore he felt Gen's hand squeeze his own hand slightly in agreement.

* * *

True to Impa’s words, by midday after the next sunrise, Gen’s eyes weakly fluttered open. Dusk and Lore just so happened to be the ones in the room at the time.

“Gen?” Dusk called, speaking with worry and concern as Gen seemed slightly unresponsive.

After a moment though, Gen turned his head towards Dusk and squinted at him. “Dusk? Is that you?”

Dusk smiled and sighed in relief. “Yes, it’s me, how are you feeling?”

“I…” Gen grimaced. “Alright, I guess. My stomach hurts a bit though.”

Dusk and Lore both cracked a smile. “That’s understandable.”

“Where are we?” Gen breathed, looking around the small room with curiosity.

“We’re in Kakariko Village, apparently. In Impa’s house.”

Gen frowned heavily. “I don’t remember…”

“You passed out, Gen. It’s been four days.” Lore stated dryly.

“Four days?” Gen eyes widened. “Dusk! You’re okay! Oh, thank Hylia! I thought… What about Ocarina? Is he okay?”

Lore chuckled and responded. “They’re fine, Gen. They both woke up yesterday.”

The two Links decided to leave out the part where Dusk figured out he could use magic. Let him cope with one thing at a time.

“...” Gen thought for a moment before speaking. “Why was _I_ out? I don’t even remember…”

Lore put a hand to his chin. “Apparently, you got infected Gen. Some parasite was eating away at your insides. We couldn’t figure out what was wrong so Rune had us bring you here.”

Gen frowned. “Rune?”

Dusk sighed. “The newest Link.”

“Oh, so you did get a nickname for him… nice.” Gen mused tiredly. “If you don’t mind though, I’d like to rest for a bit longer.”

“Sure, just promise me you’ll wake up in less than four days.”

Gen chuckled dryly as he closed his eyes. “Sure.”

* * *

The next time Gen awoke, no one was in the room, and he was somewhat grateful for that. It gave him some time to just adjust and actually wake up. The other Links were either outside or simply hanging around the house. Rune, though, had other things he needed to do.

“Impa?” He called, and the small, elderly woman looked over at him. “Could I… talk to you about something…?”

“Of course, my boy, come in here.” She motioned to a side room and stepped into the small quarters with Rune close behind.

Once Impa was seated at a table, Rune stepped up to the table, then placed a cloth-covered object he had been holding on the table. Impa looked at him curiously, then unwrapped the cloth to reveal a blood-covered, winged sword. He then placed the sword’s scabbard on the table as well. 

Her eyes widened. “This sword should _never_ taste the blood of innocent humans.” The old woman placed a hand on the stained hilt and met Rune’s gaze. “Tell me how this happened, if you were there to witness this.” 

“Unfortunately, I was not.” Rune despaired. “But, from what I’ve heard, Gen, the boy who I brought you, ran a hunter through with it in protection of the others.”

“A hunter, you say?” Impa frowned. “Why in Hyrule would he have killed a hunter?”

“I don’t know the _entire_ story, but they met up with an evil sorcerer and got transformed into Lynels. They were then attacked and well, he killed one of them.”

Impa hummed in thought. “This blade… it’s a sacred one, meant to be used only for destroying evil and purifying the land of Hyrule…” She paused. “I do not know what this could cause, but it’s possible - since the blade has a conscious spirit dwelling inside of it, that she’s felt the defilement herself - that he could be rejected as Master of the blade.”

Rune looked down. “So, what should I tell Gen?”

Impa smiled thinly. “Boy, I know you feel partly responsible, but trust me this is not your weight to bear. Let him find out for himself.”

“I can’t do that,” Rune said, sounding conflicted. “If only I had been there sooner, I could have prevented this.”

Impa looked at him with sympathy. “Child, I admire your character, but let me be the one to talk to him. You shouldn’t have to worry about that.”

“I know, I know, but…” Rune heaved a sigh. “I have this gut feeling I should talk to him.”

Impa raised a brow before nodding in understanding. “I will not doubt your judgment, for you have a courageous heart and a powerful mind. You can tell him what I have told you. Nothing more, nothing less.”

“I see…” Rune looked up at Impa. “Thank you.”

Impa smiled at him. “You’re welcome.”

Rune looked down at the sword. “I’ve dealt with the Yiga Clan.” He said quietly. “I know what he’s going to go through.” He reached out and wrapped the sword in cloth before he picked it up, then met Impa’s gaze. “Send for Realm, Lore, and Dusk, but keep the younger ones out of this, they’ve been through enough already.” 

Impa nodded. “I’ll do as you ask.” 

Rune nodded, then walked out of the room without another word.

* * *

By the time Rune walked back in, Impa had already gathered the three appointed Links that Rune had mentioned.

“So, Rune, you wanted to speak with us?” Realm tilted his head as Rune walked in and sat down in the chair next to Impa.

“Yes,” Rune looked down at the table before looking back up at the Links. “Have you told Dusk what happened?”

Lore and Realm both frowned. “What… happened?”

“Yes, what happened with Gen.”

Lore’s eyes widened in understanding and he then shook his head. “No, we haven’t.”

“I think, now, would be a good time to do that.” Rune opined, raising his eyebrows pointedly at Realm and Lore.

They both frowned deeper. “But, why? It’s over and done. There’s no point.”

Rune kept up his pointed look. “It’s… more important than you might think.”

Realm creased his eyebrows. “Well, okay…” He hesitated then turned to Dusk. “While you were out, and Gen was trying to help you, he… lost his temper.”

“See, more and more of us kept coming to him injured, and he was saying that if any more of us got injured, he was going to ‘make an example out of one of them’. If only to stop the mob and make them back off.” Lore continued.

“So, after enough of us were coming to him injured, he snapped, and well,” Realm looked away awkwardly as he mulled over Gen’s confession.

Impa nodded to Rune. “Show him the sword.” She spoke to the three standing before her. “You might want to sit down.” 

Rune nodded and silently reached over to his side, pulling out the blade as the other three took seats around the table. There was silence as Rune set the Master Sword down with a muffled thud and unwrapped the cloth.

Dusk’s eyebrows went up as he saw the crimson blood stained onto the metal. Lore and Realm cringed at the sight as they remembered what had happened in detail.

“He killed someone…” Dusk breathed in disbelief as he stared at the sword.

Rune cleared his throat awkwardly. “Three someones…”

Dusk inhaled deeply, trying to wrap his head around the fact that his fellow Link had done such a thing. He seriously couldn’t believe it.

“I… don’t know what to say.”

“You don’t have to say anything,” Rune mumbled. “It shocked me, at first, but I do understand why he did it.”

Dusk furrowed his eyebrows. “Yeah, but…”

“I know.” Rune nodded, fully understanding what Dusk was trying to convey. 

Lore took a deep breath and asked with a hint of accusation. “Why did we need to retell this again?”

“Well, see, that’s why I needed to talk to you.” Rune lowered his gaze to the sword on the table. “I don’t know if Gen remembers what happened. If he does, I’m afraid to think what will happen. If he doesn’t, and someone asks him about it, it’ll be even worse.” He paused. “I...I've gone through something like this. Having to deal with people trying to kill me, finding no other options except to…” He trailed off, then got an idea and reached to his side, then drew his own sword. The blade blazed with blue light as it saw the light of day and Rune found that he felt somewhat better holding it. 

“What...How is it glowing like that?” 

Rune gave a small smile despite the current situation as he handed the blade to Dusk, who felt better immediately as he took the sword and looked at his reflection. 

“I reforged it myself. Strange, isn’t it, how different you feel when you hold the sword? It’s like that for me as well.” Rune watched as the other two heroes took the sword from Dusk and marveled over the changes they felt, then Realm handed the sword back to Rune and he stood, looking down at the defiled sword on the table. 

“You seem like you’re planning something, Link, I know that look in your eyes.” Impa stated, eying Rune with a concerned expression. 

“Well, I was wondering what would happen if I could somehow...purify Gen’s sword with mine.”

Impa hummed in thought. “An interesting theory, but wouldn’t this era’s Master Sword be defiled as well?”

  
“Only one way to find out.” 

Impa nodded her approval and Rune concentrated on channeling the sword’s imbued light magic before touching the two blades together. There was a bright flash that startled Rune badly enough to drop his sword on the table and shield his eyes with his arms.

What a way to purify a sword, Rune thought, annoyed. A warning would've been appreciated.

When the light disappeared, Rune dropped his arms only to blink in shock and confusion. There, floating in front of him, was what appeared to be a girl in her youth. She was entirely made out of metal, and her arms were like capes that draped down her body and swayed with her movements. Her legs were black with green patterns that crisscrossed up their entirety. Her main body was a light blue and she had a gold-rimmed diamond protruding out from her chest, pulsing like a heartbeat. She had no pupils and no irises to fill her blank eyes that seemed to stare directly into Rune's soul.

“Um...” Rune stuttered, completely bewildered by the strange phenomena.

“Master Link?” She chimed, tilting her head slightly as though partially confused.

“Fi?” Dusk creased his eyebrows, looking at the sword spirit with confusion as well.

The girl in question turned to face Dusk before blinking blankly and then lowering herself onto the table next to her sword where she seemed to examine it with sadness.

“Who…?” Rune raised an eyebrow at the foreign girl before looking to Impa.

“The spirit that resides within the Master Sword.” Impa breathed. “I thought she could not manifest any longer.”

Fi looked up at that. “ I predict a 99% chance that contact with the same blade that I currently reside in caused a temporal paradox, allowing for a loophole I exploited to make myself present. ”

Lore blinked at that and soon, so did Realm. Dusk meanwhile tilted his head. “So, what are you saying? The fact that you touched yourself, so to speak, created a paradox?”

“ Precisely, Master Link. ” Fi nodded.

“Yeah, but, why would that allow you to manifest?”

“ In this vessel,  ” Fi indicated Gen’s Master Sword. “  I am able to present myself physically, however, not in this timeline. The fact that I came in contact with my vessel of this time, allows me to materialize from that vessel. ”

“So, you’re manifesting from Rune’s Master Sword? Not Gen’s?”

“If that is who you call Rune, then yes.” Fi indicated the newest Link, Rune.   
  
“Wait…” Rune began, thinking over some things. “So, if you’re the voice in the sword Zelda had asked me about, then… does that mean you see everything from this sword?”

“ I can always view what is around me as long as I am in my Master’s hand. ” Fi affirmed.

“So, you could see when I pulled you from the pedestal?”

“ As soon as you touched the hilt, yes. ” Fi nodded.

Rune's jaw dropped open slightly before he shut it and looked away, thinking.

“ Compilation of previous data shows me you were quite young when you first lifted my sword. Observations and calculations indicate the closest emotion that humans would feel is called 'Amazement'. ” Fi informed him, and though her expression didn't change, Rune could tell she was indicating her feelings when he first pulled the Master Sword.

“I... admittedly don't remember when I first pulled the Master Sword. I... only remember bits and pieces of my former life.” Rune frowned, hesitantly raising his gaze to the sword spirit.

Realm, Dusk, and Lore all looked confused at the words, “former life”. Apparently storytime was going to be a big priority once things got back in order.

“Could you... tell me more?” Rune looked pleadingly into the eyes of Fi who stared back with her emotionless eyes.

“ As previously stated, I can only see things when in contact with my Master, so there are gaps in my observations, but calculations would also indicate I have another important job to accomplish while I am manifested. I will store this conversation in my memory data for later. ” Fi informed a slightly bewildered Rune.

“A... Another job?” Rune stammered.

“ Correct, Master. I have indeed noticed my sword get defiled. Compilation of data from time periods and observations show me that this was done at the hands of my first Master. Observations also indicate that you call him Genesis, or more commonly, Gen. ” Fi nodded decisively as she stated this.

“And your job is?” Lore asked.

Fi turned to address him. “I wish to speak to him about the situation.”

The Links exchanged nervous glances before Rune spoke up.

“Follow me.”

* * *

“-ried, Gen.”

Rune stepped in the backroom to find Wind and Sketch talking to an awake Gen. Fi floated behind him, currently out of view.

“I'm sor-”

“Um, guys... could you excuse me for a minute.” Rune interrupted. “I need to see Gen. It's really important.”

“Uh, sure. I guess.” Wind stood up, followed by a confused Sketch and they made their way out, seeing Fi as they passed and becoming even more confused.

Rune stepped in and Fi followed, squeezing past Rune and coming in front where Gen and her met eyes.

“Gen, I need to-”

“ Please, Master Link. I do not mean to interrupt, but may I talk to him alone? ”

Rune stopped and nodded, walking out of the room and shutting the door behind himself.

There was silence as the two just looked at each other. There was no real emotion or mood that was in the air; They were just looking, both searching for answers in the blue of the other's eyes. Eventually, Gen lowered his head and sighed.

“I’m sorry.” He shook his head in disappointment.

Fi blinked at him and gently lowered herself to his eye level. “ Master… what happened?  ” Of course, Fi knew _what_ happened, but she decided that hearing it from Gen’s own mouth would help him get some weight off his chest. It had always helped him in the past.

Gen heaved a sigh. “I… lost control of myself. I guess my anger got a hold of me. Just… watching everyone continue getting hurt… I couldn’t do it. It was like watching my family get injured. I… _saw_ _something_ , Fi.” 

She tilted her head, beckoning him to continue.

“My… real family. Watching as the house they were in burned to the ground again. I felt that same fear. That same terror, and...” He squeezed his eyes shut as he clenched his fists. “I couldn't let it happen again. I couldn't just sit around and watch as my new family dies. I...” His voice trailed off as he felt a tear slide down his cheek. “I'm sorry.”

Fi was silent for a long moment before she spoke again. “ I understand, Master, and… I forgive you. ”

Gen looked up at her with glassy eyes and she continued. “You had defiled the holy blade of the Master Sword with what you had done, but,” She paused for a minute. “Given the circumstances, I accept you as my Master once again.” Her tone seemed to gain a hint of warning as she spoke again. “However, there are a couple of steps that must be taken to repurify the blade.”

Gen frowned and listened, his watery eyes having retained their emotion successfully.

“ First, you must clean the blade of the blood with spring water. Second, you should find holy light magic and have someone cover the Master sword in it. ” Fi said, lifting herself up to her usual height in the air.

Gen’s frown deepened. “But, I don’t know any light magic users in this era. I’ll have to ask Rune.”

Rune, however, had overheard everything from the hallway and decided to talk to Gen himself.

The door opened and Rune stepped through, then closed it slightly. “I...I overheard everything. I had no idea…”

Gen tilted his head at the noise and looked over to Rune. “About what happened when I was younger?” Rune nodded and Gen swallowed. “No one knows, save for you.”

Rune looked down at the wooden floor in thought. “I lost my family as well. My mother died of sickness when I was twelve. My father, my younger sister, and I moved from the house in Hateno to Castle Town, where I was knighted by Zelda’s father at the age of seventeen. The Great Calamity happened one year after that...I never got to say goodbye.” The Champion looked up at the wooden arched ceiling. “All of the ruins you’ve seen, they were whole one hundred years ago. All of the raised mounds you might have passed, those were mass graves of those that were victims.”

“One hundred years ago...How do you know that?”

“Because I was there. I saw the thing rise into the sky, cover the castle, destroy Hyrule. Zelda and I ran, trying to escape the machines that were hunting us, we made our last stand at Fort Hateno, near the Dueling Peaks...I died there.”

“You...died?”

“Yeah. Mortally wounded, some say, means the same thing. I was placed in the Shrine of Resurrection on the Great Plateau, and I slept for one hundred years… I forgot everything, even my name. I’m certain the only reason I knew what my name was is because of Zelda. She woke me up, told me to save Hyrule… And that’s what I’ve been trying to do for the past few months.” 

“How much do you remember now?”

“I’m remembering more each week. Impa says that traveling to the Spring of Courage will bring back the rest of my memories, but I’m not sure.” Rune reached to his side and brought out the cloth-covered object, then set it before Gen. “Your sword.” 

“The spring water...I assume would be at the Spring of Courage ...As for light magic, I have an idea as to who that would be.” 

“And that is…?”

“Dusk. I’ll go get him and we can discuss preparations.”

With that, Rune stepped out of the room and went to get the Hero of Twilight.

There was silence as Gen looked to Fi. “Sounds like quite a story.”

Fi hummed an affirmative before addressing Gen. “ I advise you to act as soon as possible. ”

Gen nodded. “We will. And Fi?”

Fi tilted her head in his direction. “Yes, Master?”

“Thank you. For being here with me. For understanding.” He let out a small laugh. “For everything, really.”

Gen noticed the very corners of her mouth twitch upwards. “You’re welcome, Master Link.”

A small smile graced Gen’s lips as they waited in silence for Rune to return. 

* * *

And soon enough, he did, and Dusk was in tow. To Gen’s surprise, Midna was visible, talking to Rune about what sounded like Twili magic.

“-on’t think that would work for this, though.”

“Oh, I know it won’t.” Midna shrugged. “But, if I recall correctly, and I know I did, you asked.”

Rune frowned in thought. “No, I... I only asked who you were.”

“Right!” Midna exclaimed cheerfully. “Which automatically asks for a definition of what our Twilight magic is. Because you can't know what a Twili is unless you know how we function in the light world, and you can't know that without learning about Twili magic.”

Rune blinked then turned to Dusk in utter bafflement. “So, how do you live with this every day?”

Dusk shrugged. “It grows on you. Plus, I know that deep down, she really does care, she just lets her ego get in the way to say it.”

“ _WHAT!?”_ Midna screeched at him, growling and floating up to his eye level. “I'll have you know that I-”

As the three continued their bickering, Gen reached out and threw back the cloth covering his sword, then looked at the dimly glowing blade lying on the cloth and made as if to pick it up by the hilt, then dropped it. He tried to pick it up again a second later and again found that attempting to pick up the sword seemed to...burn him. It was an unsettling feeling. Examining his hands showed that they were, in fact, blistering red.

“ Master, calculations and analysis show that you will not be able to pick up the sword until it has been purified, ” Fi said calmly into his ear as not to interrupt the others.

Gen looked down in shame. “I see… How am I supposed to defend myself if I can’t…”

Rune, who was by this point, not even trying to follow the argument between Dusk and Midna, overheard what Fi had said and responded easily to Gen’s question.

“I’ve picked up a lot of different weapons throughout my adventure. I’m sure you could borrow one that you like.”

Gen looked up at Rune and smiled gratefully. “I would appreciate it.”

Rune smiled and nodded. “I’ll show you my collection after we sort this out…” He trailed off as he frowned at the two still arguing.

“-am not that selfish!” Midna retorted. “I’ll have you know I only did that twice.”

Dusk gave her a flat stare. “Twice is enough to prove my point, Midna.”

The girl bristled. “Oh, if you were in my shoes, you’d have-”

“Hey! Guys!”

The two stopped mid-rant and looked over at Gen who was tapping his foot unamusedly.

“Really? Can you finish this later?”

They both awkwardly snapped their mouth shut and Dusk curtly replied, “Yes,” before Rune sighed in relief.

“Thanks, Gen.” He muttered.

Gen just nodded.

“So,” Rune began. “I, uh, actually just remembered that the Spring comes first, but Dusk,” He turned to the aforementioned Link. “Can you come with us to the Spring of Courage? I think I could teleport us there, I just need to grab a weapon for Gen real quick.”

Dusk nodded, and Midna found it was unnecessary to be out and quietly drifted back into Dusk’s shadow.

“Okay.” Rune nodded back and then gestured for Gen to follow him. “I’m just going to teleport us back to my house in Hateno real quick and then I can show you my weapon room - or so I call it.”

“Got it.” Gen nodded agreeably as he covered his sword with the cloth and picked it up, finding that he could at least hold the sword as it was now, and grabbed his hand waiting for Rune to teleport both of them.

* * *

“Here,” Rune opened the door to the dusty room and Gen squinted as he stepped in.

His eyes widened. “ _Woah_. This is incredible. How'd you manage this?”

His eyes traveled around the filled room with awe as he noticed the sheer size of some weapons, and the quantity in which he had them.

“I traveled far, kept most of my enemies weapons, and brought them here.” Rune murmured. “It builds up, I guess.”

“Wow....” Gen breathed, brushing his hand lightly over a nearby axe.

“So, what kind of weapon are you interested in? Axe? Claymore? Club? Bow? Or do you want to stick with a sword?”

“Uh..”Gen nervously laughed and turned to face Rune. “How about I just stick with a sword.”

Rune laughed as well. “Alright, alright.” He squeezed passed Gen and motioned for him to follow. “Over here.”

Gen walked quietly behind, eyes still roaming the room. Rune placed a hand to his chin as he thought about which one was his most durable sword. Eventually, he picked up a rather large one.

“How about this one? It's called the Savage L-” Rune's eyes widened as he put the sword back down. “Actually, never mind.”

Gen tilted his head in confusion before shrugging it off.

“There's this one. It's a very powerful one, said to have been used by the six sages themselves.”

Gen looked at the blade, taking in its extravagance; the way it mimicked the Master Sword in design, the blade's pure white color, the unearthly glow it gave off, perfect shape and fit in his hand. There was no way he could accept such a blade, was there?

“No, I... I couldn't.”

Rune tilted his head. “Why not?”

“Wha-” Gen looked at him in disbelief. “This must be extremely valuable, and you just want to _lend it to me_?”

Rune shrugged. “I mean, I don't think you're irresponsible.”

Gen looked back down at the sword, admiring its features once more. “I...” He then looked up. “Thank you.”

“Sure, no problem.” Rune smiled, and then led the way back out.

Gen took a deep breath and followed, grabbing his own sword on the way out still wrapped in cloth obviously. The two then teleported back to Kakariko to snag Dusk.

* * *

The cool spring water crispened the air and filled the place with a beautiful melody as it splashed calmly against the shoreline. Gen was the first to walk up, kneeling down next to the water and removing the cloth, immediately feeling the burning on his hands, but he gripped the hilt anyway, determined to do so until the blade was at least clean. He took the same cloth, soaked it in the water and lightly brushed it over the steel, watching absently as the crusted red pieces flaked off and dropped into the water where they were absorbed back into liquid. He sighed as his mind trailed off to when this sword got stained. Truly, he felt ashamed, but what was he to do? Leave the hunters alive and hope none of the Links died? I mean, really, he was trying to protect them, not hurt them. But it seemed he'd only offended the group with his outburst. Did any of them understand? Maybe some of the older ones would... if he explained…

_If he explained…_

No, Gen thought, there was no way he was going to relive his past again. It was behind him, he was going to avenge the mistakes of his younger self. His hands shook slightly, emotions welling up as he continued to wash the stained blood away, idly he noticed the pain in his hands worsen, but honestly, it was a good distraction. Pain seemed to be a consoler, tearing his mind away from his past regrets, and forcing him to focus on his task. He wouldn't go there if it could be avoided.

He wouldn't…

His eyes watched almost passively as the blade shone untainted, glistening brightly in the sun. That was when he noticed the smoke. He snapped back into reality as he saw small wisps of smoke floating up from his palms. He let go of the sword, ignoring the fact that it sank into the shallow end of the water and gasping as he looked at his bracers. He frowned immediately after he noticed the black burns on the leather. Just what he needed.

“Dusk, Rune!” He called over his shoulder. “I finished.” He looked back to where his sword was resting peacefully in the water. As the two walked over, Gen reached down and lifted it out, hearing the appropriate sizzle as the Sword flared hot under the water, causing him to wince slightly in pain before setting it down on the ground next to him. In hindsight, he probably should've asked one of the others to do this.

“Magic?” Dusk inquired, tilting his head.

Gen nodded, hiding the black marks in his fists. “Magic.”

Dusk nodded then knelt down on the ground next to Gen and the sword before closing his eyes and concentrating.  
  
He didn’t notice Midna appearing beside him, he didn’t see his Triforce lit up, the golden magic tendrils appearing, he merely concentrated on summoning said magic. He was interrupted.   
  
“Link, the sword, look!”   
  
Dusk raised his head and owned his eyes to see the sword somehow floating in the air, above the water. The golden magic was swirling around it and as Dusk stood he looked down at his hand. As he watched, his Triforce mark began to glow brighter, until it almost hurt to look at, yet, he felt fine. He felt completely calm, as if he had been using this sort of magic his entire life.   
  
Then, the magic tendrils surrounded the sword and hid it from view.   
  
Fi floated forwards. “Calculations indicate an influx of magic. My vessel has successfully absorbed the magic used to purify it.”   
  
Then the sword pulsed once. The three Hylians, Midna, and Fi all backed away to the edge of the spring. The sword pulsed again. A third time. Then, Dusk noticed his Triforce piece, for Gen his entire Triforce, blazing as if they were on fire. They gave each other very confused looks, before they had to shield their eyes from a sudden wave of golden energy.

The other Heroes felt the effects first. Their Triforce pieces also lit up and they all questioned Impa, who merely began smiling. Those closest to her thought she said “they did it.”

The Gorons saw a golden-light-blue beam of light pierce the clouds and continue out of sight. They all wondered what this meant, unaware that the other Tribes had also witnessed this.   
  
  
Sidon saw the light from the well lit Zora’s Domain and questioned its origins. The other Zora began voicing their thoughts and the Zora Prince made no effort to silence them. 

The Gerudo saw the light even from the sand covered town they lived in. 

  
  
The Rito saw the light pierce the heavens and those in the air stopped flying and merely hovered there in the sky, wondering. 

When the light faded, Dusk was the first to regain his vision. He wasn’t looking at the sword, however, but his hand. The tendrils had turned from, well, tendrils, to a small orb resting in the palm of his open hand. He caught something glowing and raised his right hand, only to find a second orb. They seemed to defy gravity, for no matter which way he turned his hands, the orbs did not fall or disappear.   
  
“...I don’t believe this…” Midna flew in front of him and then smiled. “I didn’t know you had it in you to become a mage.”   
  
“What?”   
  
“You see, long ago, the Twili and Hylians were close. They shared magic with each other, but when the mirror was built and sealed, the combined magic was lost.” Midna grinned. “It seems you’re the first person to reestablish the connection in a very long time.”   
  
“What does that mean?”   
  
“It means you can use real magic now. You know, shoot fireballs at things, freeze stuff, summon lighting, things like that.”   
  
“I can do all of that?” Dusk paused. “Wait, why do I feel like...I feel fine?”   
  
Rune spoke up. “The spring. Its waters heal and rejuvenate. Seems to also affect magic.”   
  
His voice trailed off as he saw the sword.   
  
It was floating in the air before the statue; the blade a mixture of gold and light blue, it reflected light as the other two Heroes watched in silence as Gen stepped up to the sword and slowly reached out…   
  
As soon as his hand touched the hilt, he lifted the sword a bit, and as he did so, a beam of light shot from the blade’s tip and up towards the sky.   
  
However, there was no time to celebrate. Screams and roars echoed around them and the other two Heroes drew their swords.   
  
“What…” Midna floated into the air above Dusk and summoned her own magic. “I thought there was nothing here?”   
  
Rune swung his sword in a circle at his side. “A beam of light like that would get everyone’s attention.”   
  
Dusk saw something out of the corner of his vision and he spun around, only to look up at the biggest Lizalfos he had ever seen.   
  
The thing eyed him curiously, tilting its head as it hissed and weaved back and forth. Similar hisses erupted around him and then the heroes were surrounded by various species of Lizalfos.   
  
“Rune, please tell me you have some idea as to how to get out of this situation.”   
  
“I always have ideas. Right now, I think we should show them who we are. Do you wish to join me?”   
  
Dusk nodded, then noticed that his sword seemed to be struck by electricity. On a whim, he swung the sword towards a waiting Lizalfos and watched as lighting struck it from the sky. “...That’s new.”   
  
The other creatures roared and charged, the three heroes met gazes, nodded, raised their swords and started swinging. 

Their swords cleaved through flesh like butter, blood splattering the ground and screeches of the monsters amplifying. Gen eased his sword through the closest one's middle and back-flipped out of the way soon after. The monster bared its teeth at him, saliva dripping from its mouth as it did so, and Gen wasted no time in raising his sword skyward, waiting the few moments it took to charge and swinging down vertically. He watched with a satisfied smirk as the blue light spiraled into the beast and caused it to collapse, vaporizing away into the dark magic it was created from. His victory, however, was short lived as a second crept up from behind.

Dusk, with the help and encouragement of Midna, was playing around with some of his offensive attack magic. Or at least, he was trying.

“Use a fireball or something!” Midna reasoned, continuing their new argument.

“You say that like I ought to know how!” Dusk retorted, taking another step back.

“Concentrate, focus!” Midna advised. “ _Obviously_.”

Dusk groaned. “On what?”

“Your Triforce thingy.”

Dusk blinked. “My Triforce thingy? Midna, it's called the Triforce of Courage.”

“Whatever!” Midna threw her hands out to the side. “Just focus on it.”

He gave her a flat stare as he evaded the next swipe of the Lizalfos. “Just focus? What's that going to do?”

“How am I supposed to know? It's your ability!” Midna shot back without missing a beat.

The Lizalfos, feeling slightly ignored, hissed threateningly before whipping its tail and prepared to breathe fire.

Dusk yelped and held his palm out on instinct, closing his eyes and looking away. He stayed like that for a bit before he heard the monster let out a choked squeal as it died, poofing into dark smoke. He opened his eyes and blinked, watching his Triforce piece pulse brightly.

“What happened?” He turned to Midna.

“Well, if you weren't looking away like a coward, you'd know that you just reflected it's fiery breath right back at it.” Midna smirked. “Just do that again.”

“I don't know what I did, it was just instinctive.”

“Then, go with your instincts.” Midna shrugged.

Dusk gave her a doubtful look but decided to go with it anyways. Before he could blink, a loud boom sounded from his left. He turned at the noise, eyes wide as he saw the remains of lightning strike a Lizalfos falling over and revealing Rune smiling as he shook his hand. Story time really needed to commence soon, Dusk frowned. A hiss from right behind him startled him badly enough that he jumped off the ground before whirling around and taking a few steps back, pulling his hand out and looking away as the beast's tail came whipping forward. The creature was encased in a gold light, and unearthly golden chains locked it to the ground. Blinking, Dusk turned to face it, eye wide as he looked.

“Wha-”

“Gotcha covered.” Rune smiled, sliding up beside Dusk and running forward to hack and slash madly at the Lizalfos's form while it was in stasis.

“What happened?” Dusk questioned.

“Stasis rune.” Rune answered back, sprinting back to the Hero of Twilight and watching in satisfaction as the Lizalfos was freed and was sent flying back where it slammed into a tree, knocking said tree over and snapping its neck. It vaporized away instantly.

Dusk blinked. “And that does?”

“Well, it freezes things in place and makes them store all their kinetic energy. Hence why it flew back after I hacked at it.”

“Nifty.” Dusk commented.

Rune nodded, connecting the Sheikah Slate to his belt.

Gen, had taken out the second Lizalfos easily enough, and had been able to watch as Rune snapped his fingers and used Urbosa's Champion ability, calling lightning down on the Lizalfos and becoming appropriately shocked by it. Stunning, certainly, Gen had to admit. He'd never seen anyone do that before. By that time, a third had made itself present, closing in and attacking as Gen swiftly dodged, whipping his sword in a horizontal slice, opening a large gash in the monster's stomach. The creature cried out and prepared to blow fire, but Gen beat him to it, running behind the fiend and scaling its side before jamming the sword in his neck. With a roar of pain, the Lizalfos collapsed, poofing away into wispy smoke. Sheathing the Master Sword, he wiped his brow and turned to face Dusk and Rune who had just finished taking down the last reptile.

“I think we got 'em all.” Rune sighed in relief as the three met back up around the spring.

“That was impressive, man.” Gen praised. “Lightning! From your hand! _That's cool._ ”

“Hey, that light beam was pretty cool too.” Rune complimented. “And Dusk... what was that shield thing?”

“Shield thing?” Dusk tilted his head.

Rune blinked. “Yeah, that orange wall that formed from your palm and reflected the fire.”

“You didn't tell me about a shield.” Dusk turned an accusative look on his partner who shrugged.

“I didn't need to. As long as you know that you survived and _what_ you did, you didn't need to know _how_.” She smirked at him when he sighed and shook his head.

“I still think that stasis rune was pretty sweet.” Dusk raised his eyebrows pointedly at Rune.

“Stasis thing?” Gen asked.

“Yeah, you missed out on that.”

“Oh... I guess I was busy.”

“I guess so.” Dusk laughed.

The three all let out a laugh at that, a “let it out” kind of laugh. A laugh that just lets you relax and takes your mind off of the stress of life. One that's _releasing._

* * *

The three returned to Kakariko to pick up the rest of the guys and thank Impa profusely for her hospitality and help to which she had said, “No need, Link. Whenever you need it, my help is always available,” and they all had Rune teleport them back to his house in Hateno. The Links took the rest of the day to nap and just _relax_. Something they hadn't been able to do in a while. Just, forget their worries for a day and rest. It was rejuvenating. It was refreshing. And it lifted their spirits exponentially.

But everything must come to an end.

And so it was that some of the younger Links, these being Wind, Sketch, Steam, The Four and Green, decided to talk to Dusk in private.

“What is it?” Dusk leaned on an elbow.

The five younger ones exchanged unsettled glances.

“It’s about Gen.” Green murmured.

Dusk stiffened, but nodded nonetheless.

“That was… kind of messed up. Like, I can’t stop thinking about that. I.. I just don’t like seeing Gen out of control like that.”

“Well,” Dusk began. “I wouldn’t either, but don’t you think you should talk to Lore about this? He was there. Or maybe… Gen?”

The Links grimaced.

“ **Lore is…** ” The Four began, struggling to find the right words. “ **Lore’s not as understanding as you. And, Gen? How would you feel talking to someone about themself?** ”

Dusk sighed. “I know, but…” He paused, frowning. “I don’t think I can give you the best answers because I wasn’t there.”

“Just try.” Sketch frowned back.

Dusk sighed. “What do you want to know?”

“Just listen for now. Can we just… talk to you about it?” Wind frowned.

Dusk nodded softly then gestured for the others to sit down around the table. “Yes.”

* * *

In the next room over, Rune was calmly sitting in a chair, lost in his thoughts, when Gen walked in.

“Where are the others?” Gen asked, sitting in a chair across from Rune.

Run shrugged. “Some are outside, and I think a few of the younger ones wanted to talk to Dusk in there.” He nodded his head towards the door next to himself.

Gen hummed absently. “About what, do you know?”

Rune shook his head with another shrug. “Said it was private or something.”

Gen worried at his lower lip, feeling that guilt rise in his gut again. “I see…”

Rune looked up at Gen, and almost as if sensing his unease, spoke. “I’m sure if it involves you, they’ll talk to you about it later.”

“Maybe.” Gen conceded, but it wasn’t convincing.

Rune, being the new guy, still didn’t quite understand how their group dynamic worked, but could tell that they mostly functioned like a family. “Gen… I’m sure they will. Don’t get too concerned. Worry is never helpful.”

Gen’s look clearly indicated what he thought, but he didn’t say anything, instead opting for a nod, and let his head drop.

“-control like-”

Gen furrowed his eyebrows as he heard bits and pieces of the conversation.

“-wouldn’t either, but-”

Rune, hearing this as well, looked back at Gen and bit his lip. “Look, Gen, maybe… you should talk to them once they're done. You know, take the initiative.”

Gen snapped his eyes to Rune’s. “I couldn’t do that.”

Rune was about to reply when the conversation next door cut him off.

“- **someone about themself** -”

Gen winced, and Rune frowned heavily. “You really should explain things to them. I mean, look at this from their perspective-”

“Why should I?” Gen interrupted, tone gaining bitterness. “They can’t do that for me, obviously.”

Rune flinched back at the unexpected tone, and Gen sighed.

“I’m sorry. I just…”

Gen relaxed into the chair he was sitting in and looked to the side.

“I understand, Gen.” Rune started. “You feel like they’re being unfair, and I get that, but…” His voice dropped quieter. “That doesn’t mean you should be unfair too. One wrong doesn’t justify another.”

Gen let out a small scoff, but agreed with him. “I know, I know…” He looked up with a hint of a smile. “When’d you become such a philosopher?” 

Rune laughed quietly. “I’m not. I’m only stating the truth.”

Gen raised a brow, clearly indicating that Rune was proving his point, but it dropped soon after. “I just…. Okay.”

“Think about this, Gen.” Rune began, carefully choosing his words. “You watch your best friend, someone you’ve been close to for years, get out of control and do something you never dreamed they’d do. Now, this person was someone you trusted. Someone you could go to any time you needed. After they did something like that, how would you feel?”

Gen thought for a moment, and the guilt increased exponentially. “I guess… I’d just want to know why…” His voice became sulkier as he finished. “I’d want an explanation.”

Rune nodded and bit his lip. “That’s how they feel, Gen. I think you should help them understand, don’t you?”

Gen took a deep breath. “Yeah… I suppose. But, I really don’t want to.”

“Sometimes the right thing to do is the hard thing to do.”

Gen cracked a smirk. “Again with that philosophy.”

Rune reciprocated. “Again, I’m just telling the truth.”

They both laughed at that.

“Okay, okay…” Gen’s smile faded. “This… is going to be hard though.”

“It always is.” Rune agreed.

“Might as well do it sooner than later, huh?”

Rune just nodded.

When the door opened, the Links that walked out blinked awkwardly and nervously fidgeted with their hands as they saw Gen - Dusk excluded.

“Hey um, guys, I need to talk to you.” Gen said, at the same time that Dusk said, “Hey Gen, we need to talk to you.”

There was a moment of _very_ awkward silence.

“Um…” Gen stammered, trying valiantly to move on. “So, can I talk or do you need to talk first?”

“I have a feeling,” Dusk muttered. “That we’re going to end up talking about the same thing.”

“Uh, yeah…” Gen tittered. “Could we… maybe, get everyone?”

“I think that’d be perfect.” Dusk agreed.

* * *

It took more than a few minutes to get everyone inside and in the same room, but when it did, Gen was positive he wasn’t ready for this conversation.

“So…” Gen awkwardly began. “You go first.”

Sketch and Wind looked at each other nervously before Wind spoke up.

“Um… Gen, I was actually… well,” He felt his palm get sweaty as he tried valiantly to sound strong. “We all were kind of wondering if uh… you could… explain what happened earlier?”

Gen creased his eyebrows and looked down. “Yeah… That was… actually why I wanted to talk to you all anyway.” His voice hitched once, but he gave himself a mental fistpump that it didn’t tremble or waver at all.

“So, uh, to get into that…” Gen started, sounding extremely conflicted. “I have to go into my childhood a little bit.” He paused, swallowing hard. “Okay?”

The Links exchanged unsettled glances, but nodded nonetheless.

“Okay…” Gen breathed, taking a few deep breaths. “So, when I was… younger. Like, eight or so, I obviously still lived with my parents on Skyloft. I was an only child, but I’d always wanted a sibling. I kept asking my parents why they never had another kid, and they said that they never wanted more than one.” Gen’s eyes averted all others as he continued. “I was… disappointed about this, obviously, but what was I going to do? I mean, they kept telling me how, ‘I had Zelda to play with’, and how, ‘Having children is expensive.’ I mean, I accepted their logic easy enough, but I still begged them to have another kid even if I didn't know how that happened then.”

“But two years later, out of the blue one day, I overheard my mom talking to my dad about how, 'Something went wrong,' and how, 'She was pregnant again.' I could hear my dad asking her if she wanted to get rid of it or not, and she refused.” Gen let out a halfhearted laugh as he continued. “She said, 'She loved him, and that he would be a perfect brother for me,' and a few days later, they pulled me aside to talk to me about it.” Gen's eyes filled with tears as he struggled to keep talking. “I was overjoyed, you know? I mean, I'd always wanted a sibling, but more than anything, I'd wanted a brother, and they were giving me one. I'd finally have the sibling I'd begged them for.”

“To celebrate, my parents took me out to the Lumpy Pumpkin for dinner...” Gen bit his lips as the tears began to fall, and he had to stop for a moment. “By the time we got back, it was late, and everything was dark. We immediately went to bed, and my dad completely forgot to extinguish the fire in the living room. I woke up...” He took a deep breath, trying hard to finish through the tears. “To the smell of smoke and that’s alarming, obviously, so I ran to my parents’ room to find them asleep. Being ten, I was unsure if I should awake them, or even if this was something bad or not, but it wasn’t normal. So, instead of waking them, I went to look for myself.”

Gen cringed, struggling to speak. “When I got to the living room, I noticed the rug was on fire as well as a good portion of the wooden floor. I started screaming for my parents to come, running back into their room, and it wasn’t long before they woke up and got a grasp of the situation. I don’t…” Gen frowned, silent tears making their way down his cheeks still. “I don’t remember everything that happened after that, but when my parents got to the living room, part of the ceiling I hadn’t noticed was on fire, fell and separated us from each other. I was terrified. So…” He took a steadying breath. “I ran out of the house. But soon, as more of the house went up in flames and my parents hadn't come out with me, I was desperate. I didn't know what to do. I’m not sure if I made the right or the wrong decision by going back in there to find them, but I did anyway.”

Gen took another deep breath, forcing himself to continue. “This is where my memory gets a bit fuzzy, but I know for a fact that I saw my parents together, trapped behind burning rubble in the living room. I tried to get to them, but as I pushed through the flames, I cut my foot on something. It was… bad enough to make me fall, and before I could get up and out of the way, a burning beam of sorts fell from in front of me and sliced a part of my chest open.” He closed his eyes, tears continuing to fall as the memory continued. “I don’t remember much after that. I just remember pain, and screaming. It must have been hours after that someone from the village finally came out. But in that time, I just remember feeling so much pain. I saw my parents for the last time as the ceiling above them collapsed. They didn’t see me in there, probably thinking I was outside and safe. But, it was just torture as I stayed there, on the floor, feeling the blood seep between my fingers, feeling the searing pain and the smell of flesh burning.”

Gen squeezed his eyes shut. “I must have blacked out or something because the next thing I remember… was waking up in the Academy's infirmary. Where I was told that…” He couldn’t say it. He just…. _He couldn’t_.

“My parents…” Gen managed. “They didn’t make it. By the time Zelda’s father got to our house, practically the whole thing collapsed. They put out the flames as fast as they could and dug through the rubble, finding me barely alive and my parents… already gone from the world.”

Gen clenched his fists. “And all I could think about was how, ‘it was all my fault,’ and ‘that if only I’d gone in sooner, or better yet, never left, I could’ve helped them.’ I was consumed by guilt. But then, the doctors told me something I’d almost forgotten about.”

“The baby…” Gen couldn’t hold back, the dam broke and he sobbed.

“There was no way....” Gen shook his head. “That I could ever forgive myself for that. For allowing that, for not preventing it. For being a coward and leaving them to their demise.”

Gen took a deep, shaky breath. “And so, I made a promise. To myself. That I would protect my loved ones. No matter what. That I wouldn’t allow any of them to die. That I would stick by them no matter what the situation was.” He opened his glassy eyes and for the first time during his story, looked the Links in the eyes. “You guys are my family, and I couldn’t stand watching you all get hurt while I stayed on the sidelines and did nothing to prevent it. It triggered me, and… I’m sorry.”

He looked away then, not willing to meet anyone’s eyes as he struggled to calm himself. Gen muttered something that only Rune was able to catch. “May Hylia and the Three judge me for my actions.”

The Links… they were mortified. They didn’t know that it was so personal to Gen. I mean, yeah, they were all like a family, but they never knew that was so _literal_ for Gen. Maybe, they mused despairingly, they should’ve talked to him first before coming to conclusions.

“Gen…” Wind began, and stopped, for he had no idea what to say.

“Guys…” Rune spoke up quietly. “Just so you can understand a bit better, I’ve had to kill people too.”

The Links went silent as they looked to Rune.

“It’s not always… a choice. It’s either your life or theirs, and it's almost instinct to protect your own life.” Rune said, looking off into the middle-distance. “Zelda and I were plagued with assassins, people of the traitorous Yiga clan. I had to make the choice to kill to save my life and hers. Did I want to? Not always. But, I couldn't have lived with myself if I let them get to Zelda. It wasn't a choice. It was a need. A must do. In order to stay alive.”

There were approximately twenty seconds of contemplative silence as the Links absorbed that.

“Gen,” Speck piped up quietly. “I... may not understand completely, but I lost my parents too. I don't... I don't know what happened. I never met them, and ended up growing up with my grandfather. Whenever I asked about my father, he always changed the subject, never indulging me at all.” Speck frowned. “I just want to know who they were, what they were like. I told myself that, either way, I was going to make them proud.”

Lore nodded, one of the few moments when he was serious. “My parents...” He mumbled. “Were abusive. My dad would beat me when he was mad or stressed, and my mom... she would ignore me. My father never even gave me a chance, always saying how I would never amount to anything, and my mom either didn't care or was too afraid of losing him. She would brush it off and tell me to shut up.” He looked down. “My uncle got me out of that mess of a family and brought me to live with him outside of Kakariko Village. I had hoped they would change, but they never did. I soon heard that they got into a street fight with some thugs – well, my dad did anyway – and he died. No one knows what happened to my mother. They found her body, dead, throat slit in her bedroom. My father either killed her or...” He closed his eyes and paused before continuing. “she committed suicide.”

“I'm sorry Lore.” Gen looked at him with watery eyes.

Lore shrugged, expression hardening as he brushed it off. “They never cared about me anyways. I just made it a personal goal to prove him wrong.”

Dusk smiled sympathetically in his direction. “You did, Lore.”

Lore forced a sad smile. “I know.” He paused and then a smirk slowly slid onto his face. “I mean, you guys can't get enough of me.”

The Links collectively let out a laugh.

The air settled back down into the tense silence as Wind spoke up. “I mean, my parents were great. I'm not sure I could ever relate to you there, but I can relate to Gen in that I lost my parents at a young age too. I was nine,” Wind frowned, looking down. “It was their anniversary and they took a boat to sail to Windfall to celebrate and left me and my sister with Grandma.” He shook his head, tears pricking his eyes. “They never returned. Aryll was even younger than me, and she barely remembers them at all.”

The Links frowned sympathetically. “I'm sorry, man.” Sketch put a comforting hand on his shoulder.

“It's okay. I just hope I'm living up to their memory.”

There were a few moments as a few of Links nodded empathetically.

“Our dad was actually the Captain of the Royal Guard. We became friends with Zelda easily that way.” Green frowned then nudged Red's shoulder to continue.

“Our mom died from an illness though.” He sniffled as he tapped Vio's shoulder unable to say anything more.

“He's a great dad, but being a Captain really takes a lot of his time so we don't see him that much.” Vio sagged his shoulders. “But, our life isn't nearly as hard as yours.”

“Hey,” Dusk called softly. “Everyone's problems matter. No matter how insignificant they may seem. Losing your mom is tough.”

Rune nodded. “I lost my mom from illness too.” He frowned. “She was like my anchor, and when I lost her, it was devastating. Moms are just like that...” He paused as he remembered Lore's story. “At least, they should be. When they're not, I can't even imagine how tough that must be. My sister, dad, and I moved from here to Castle Town soon after, where I was knighted by the King. But the Calamity struck and I was fatally wounded while protecting the Princess. I... died there, and was placed in the Shrine of Resurrection, where I woke up a hundred years later. I never even got to say goodbye to my family. I didn't...” He stopped, looking to the floor as tears stung his eyes. “I didn't even remember them until recently. I lost all my memories after I woke up, but I kept remembering more and more, the more places I traveled to. I just... I never got to tell them how much I loved them. I'm trying to show them though. I hope they're watching from up there in the Sacred Realm.”

“I'm sure they are, Rune.” Realm grabbed his hand from his side.

Rune forced a smile. “Thanks.”

Realm reciprocated, then frowned as he spoke. “I lost my family at a really young age too. I mean, I can barely remember anything about them. Except... brown hair and blue eyes. I suppose I must look a lot like them. I don't... I don't even remember what happened to them. I've just kind of been wandering my way through life, orphaned in the wilderness. Fending for myself. All of what I know about combat, I taught myself. I had too, what with all the monsters that crawled around everywhere. I was about... six or seven when I lost them.”

“You smile so much Realm, I would've never guessed you had such a rough childhood.” Steam genuinely stated.

Realm let out a weak laugh. “I'm working on keeping a positive outlook on life no matter what. I'm sure my parents don't want me to be miserable so I'm trying to honor them that way.”

“You know, I never really thought of it that way...” Steam mused. “But it's true, I mean, regardless of what happened, I'm sure our parents would never have wanted us to be miserable.”

Realm just nodded.

“It makes me wonder...” Dusk started. “Why all of us have such rough lives. I can't wait to ask them when I get to the Sacred Realm. The goddesses that is.”

“Do you think...” Speck started quietly. “That maybe the reason is so we would have the courage to face anything? I, for example, chose to start on my quest willingly if only to make my deceased parents proud. Lore, you said you wanted to prove your father wrong and show him you could become someone. Wind, you wanted to live up to their reputation. I would continue, but I think you all get where I'm going with this. I think, maybe, those trials were put in our life to help us grow stronger to become the hero.”

Dusk and the others considered it, slowly nodding as they understood what he was saying.

“Isn't that cruel though?” Ocarina asked from where he sat. “I mean, really, throwing tragedies into our lives for their own personal gain... So we'll be _strong_ enough or whatever?” He scoffed. “I don't like that.”

“It may be cruel, but we can’t prevent that, and it's how we deal with it, Ocarina.” Mask answered. “I hated it when I found out I was actually Hylian. Everything I knew about myself... it was all a lie. I thought I was a Kokiri, a child who wasn't born, but rather created. I thought there was something wrong with me for a long time because every child I knew had a fairy partner. I thought I was supposed to have one, but it turns out, I was never meant to at _all_. Not even Navi.”

“Eventually, the Great Deku Tree Sprout told me that I was never Kokiri, I was a Hylian. I'm in the same boat as Speck when you said you never knew your parents.” Ocarina frowned. “Like, he didn't even mention my dad. He just told me that there was a civil war, and in it, my mother was fatally injured. So, she fled into the forbidden woods that is the Kokiri Forest and gave me to the Great Deku Tree to raise me and keep me safe.”

“Any and all of what I know about my dad was told to me by Rauru. Apparently, he was a knight and died in that same civil war, but… To be honest, I have no real reason to believe this except that the Great Deku Tree told me, but... I never knew her so I could never know. The closest thing I had to a mother was my best friend Saria.” Mask continued, frowning as well.

“Saria was the forest girl we met?”

Mask nodded absently.

“Not having a mother can be one of the toughest things, I think. I mean, not having a dad is terrible too, but your mother is the one that fed you as a baby and cared for and held you the most. I feel like, if you don't have one, it's like losing your lifeline. Moms are more understanding, and they're the ones you go to when your dad got too upset with you. You go, crying in tears, vulnerable, to her, and when she's not there for you... it's heartbreaking.” Dusk said, looking down to the floor. “My parents were both amazing. They showed their love to each other and to me, and I feel like the relationship between the parents is just as important as their relationship with you.”

There were collective nods all around, and Steam looked down and away.

“But,” Dusk sighed. “On my birthday, my dad got me a horse, a filly in fact, and we went riding together.”

“Was this in Ordon?” Speck asked quietly.

“No,” Dusk shook his head. “My parents and I lived secluded from any towns and supported ourselves by growing our own food and hunting for meat. But, while we were out, we saw in the distance, our house caught on fire. My dad told me to get out of the area and find shelter while he turned and went back to my mom. I was dumbstruck, at the age of ten, I wasn't sure what was going on. I thought maybe he was disowning me, that he didn't want me. But, when King Bulblin emerged from the woods... with my father's dead corpse, I knew. I had to follow his words. I traveled for what was probably days until I finally reached Ordon. Rusl found me outside and took me in. He became like my dad and Uli like my mother. They could never replace them, but I'm sure my parents were happy I found a good home. I've been trying to make them proud too, Speck.”

“ **Our own dad, was also in the Royal Guard, not the captain but second ranking.** ” The Four sighed. “ **Our mom though was going out with other boys and finally, they divorced. We don't think we'll ever see her again. We never really knew what it was like to be able to rely on a mom. But, our dad was devastated at losing her so he tried that much harder to make us happy. He's grown so much more weary now though, we think he's exhausting himself between work and us, and we just... we don't know what to say, you know? Because I know he's trying for us, we're just concerned.** ”

“Did you have anyone you could talk to about it?” Realm frowned.

The Four sighed and shrugged. “ **I mean, Zelda, yeah, but...** ”

“She could never replace a real mom. Saria was the same way.” Ocarina finished, nodding sadly.

“Dusk,” Steam murmured. “You said that the relationship between the parents is just as important. And... I agree. See, when I was still living with my parents, all I remember about their interactions was fighting. They were constantly arguing with each other, yelling, and I was just sort of left in the dust, so to speak. I was neglected. I was never abused physically or anything, but I was ignored, and I literally had to care for myself. I made myself meals, did almost all the chores around my house, and had to pay for everything I owned. Meaning, I had to find a job of sorts at the age of only ten. It was hard, but I did get some money from helping the people around town and that's what got me through until I started training to become an engineer. When that happened, I explained my situation to a guy named Niko and let me room with him. I never even heard from my parents during that time. I even wonder if they noticed I left...” Steam felt the wetness of tears in his own eyes as he finished.

“I'm sorry...” Lore bit his lip and looked down. “I had to do those same things, support myself while my parents just never bothered to care for me.”

“When did you get out of your house, Lore?” Steam tilted his head.

“I was about... nine when my uncle took me to leave with him.” Lore looked over to him. “You?”

“Eleven, I spent the next two years in education, and then I turned thirteen around the time my adventure started.”

“You know,” Sketch began sourly. “Sometimes, I wish I was never chosen to be the hero. And other times, I just… I’m glad it was me because I wouldn’t want anyone else to experience what I’ve had to. I mean, my dad was… a drunkard. He wouldn’t get severe with hurting me, but he would slap me sometimes. My mom would fight with him a lot, trying to stop him because she cared about me. But, one night, he came back, and he was totally out of his mind.” He sighed and squeezed Wind’s shoulder as a tear slipped down his cheek. “I mean, he was just… crazy, insane, and he really took it out on me. It was the first time he’d ever gotten more violent than just hitting me. He punched me in the face so hard I blacked out for a few minutes. When I woke back up, he and my mom were fighting again.” He took a shaky breath as he continued. “All I really remember was seeing his hand grip the handle of the knife on the table. I must have looked away or something, but… when I looked again…” He stopped, clenching his fist and adding pressure to Wind’s shoulder blade. “My mama… she was dead. I didn’t know what to do, so, I just ran. I ran from my house and never returned. I ran for hours and then walked for at least a day. I must have been so exhausted I passed out because I remember waking up in a different house and that’s where I met a kid named Gully. He and his dad apparently found me outside in the rain and took me inside. He asked me what happened and why I was outside like that, and after I explained it to him, he agreed to take care of me, and I could become his apprentice...” He let out a jerky sigh. “That was the last time I ever heard from my real parents.” 

“That's tough.” Blue finally spoke.

From within Dusk's shadow, Midna politely pretended not to notice Shadow tearing up.

“We're all here for you, Sketch.” Gen nodded firmly in his direction and said Link smiled appreciatively.

There were a multiple consecutive minutes of silence.

“You know,” Lore began, with that Tone. “I've just broke another one of my promises to myself.”

Dusk raised an eyebrow at him. “And that is?”

“I said I wouldn't be depressed for more than five minutes a day.” Lore nodded decisively, feigning remorse. “I just took that promise and ripped it. To _shreds_.”

A few of the Links chuckled at that and most smiled and shook their heads. Typical Lore.

“Now that I think about it though...” Lore started, more seriously. “How did we even start this?”

Gen let out a small, almost sarcastic laugh before frowning. “That'd be me. I was, um... apologizing to you guys.”

“ _Oh._ ” Lore bit his lip and then smirked. “I _think_ we all forgive you Gen. I mean, I'm not _positive_ , but I've got a feeling we all do.”

Gen snorted. “Yeah.” He then became serious. “Thank you guys, really. And, I will try to do better next time.”

“It's okay, Gen.” Speck smiled. “I don't think any of us realized just how important we all are to each other until now. Perhaps we never would have, had this not happened.”

Gen nodded contemplatively, agreeing with that logic easily enough.

“I say,” Lore piped up again. “We create a... promise of sorts.”

“What do you mean?” Wind tilted his head.

Lore grinned. “Since we've all had such hard times as kids, and never really had any sort of _family_ to rely on, we become the family for each other that no one's had before. I think, that perhaps, our meeting was more than just saving the universe. I think that they were trying to make it up to us. To help heal our pasts with each other's company. To give each other the support of a family that was deprived from us as small children. I think that they feel bad and are trying to give us another chance.”

The Links thought about that.

Rune smiled. “I think you're right.”

“So, here's the promise,” Lore took a deep breath and spoke. “We'll all be a family, no matter what. Agreed?”

“Agreed!” The Links chorused.

And Lore... he couldn't help it.

“Group Glomp!”

All the Links stood up, and though Rune was confused as to what that was, he soon found out as everyone pulled together in a large group and hugged. It was a respectful, I'm here for you hug. A, it doesn't matter what you've done, I love you anyways kind of hug. It was a supportive, I'll never leave you kind of hug.

It was a _family_ hug.

There was silence in the house as Shadow quietly removed himself from Dusk's shadow and look a bracing breath. He couldn't believe he was going to do this. He bit his lip and looked away as he simply placed his hand on Dusk's shoulder, subtly adding his own agreement to the promise.

Dusk, the only one to know about the Dark Link's advance, smiled to himself and snaked a hand out of the pile to place his it on top of Shadow's. He felt Shadow's other hand reluctantly and lightly set itself over top of Dusk's.

And he swore he felt Shadow squeeze it gently.

**Author's Note:**

> Again, I hope you enjoyed and don't forget to leave kudos and a comment if you did! They keep me motivated!


End file.
